I called my sponsor, Bret Hicken, tonight to ask about going trapping on Saturday and left a message as nobody answered. A minute later I got a call back, from his son. He told me that his dad passed away last night from a heart attack. Of course I was shocked and dismayed and sad for them and all those things. Hard to believe when you see someone recently and then they're gone a week later.
Of course this means I'll need to find a new sponsor. I called a falconer who lives close by that knew my Bret to make sure he heard the news. After that conversation he let me know he'd help out as best he could and we'd talk about apprenticeship in the near future. We'll see what works out.
Meanwhile, I hope Bret's family is well and able to carry on in peace.
Thursday, September 22, 2011
Saturday, September 17, 2011
The one that got away
After taking some time off to let the weather get cooler it was time
again this morning to give it another try. Luckily the cat woke me up at
5:30 so I was fresh and ready to head out early. Ok, I slept in a
little more after that and got out by 7:15. I headed out toward the mink
farm and was excited to see 3 kestrels all together on the wires, two
males and one female. I saw one of them chasing starlings in a field
nearby so figured they were hungry enough. Though I wonder if the one
chasing starlings (female) was the mother; not sure if the young'uns
would know to hunt birds yet. In fact, at one point I saw the two males
hopping around in the road like lesser birds, eating bugs. tsk tsk
I dropped the gerbil baited trap and turned back and settled in to watch. Maybe one minute after the drop one of the males dropped down and hovered about 3 feet above the trap, then dropped down onto it. And sat there. And the gerbil sat there. And the kestrel still sat there. (They're both supposed to run around in a frenzy. The gerbil to get away from the bird, the bird to grab the gerbil and more importantly get his feet tangled up.) Perhaps they conversed in a way only hunter and prey can communicate.
Kestrel: You will be my breakfast, little rodent.
Gerbil: Fat chance. Go eat a bug.
Kestrel: What are these weird fuzzy things sticking up all around me?
Gerbil: *chuckle* You'll see.
Kestrel: Wait, what? My feet are tangled! I'm outta here! *hop flap*
That's where my heart skipped a beat. He had sat so quietly on the trap, no running around and footing at the gerbil so when he hopped I didn't think much of it. I kept waiting for him to move across the trap toward the gerbil. Then he hop-flapped again. The third hop-flap finally got through to my brain that he was caught in the noose and I started the car and pulled into the road. I was too far away for him to get spooked by the car but coincidentally, right as I started car he flew off the trap, right back up to the wire. I'm guessing that since he didn't run across the trap he wasn't tangled enough and when he just hopped straight up and down, the noose opened up and let him loose. If he had panicked and kept the pressure on the line, he would have been caught. *sigh*
I backed into my waiting spot again and waited. (That's why I call it a "waiting" spot. I wait there.) Well, after a little more looking at the trap, he flew down to the road and started pecking at bugs again like a dang chicken.
I drove around and found a couple other kestrels but nothing with a good setup for dropping the trap and none were looking hungry by then. The sun was up and warming everything and the bugs were on the move. Maybe next weekend we'll try again.
 |
| Compare this male's chest with the one on the background of the site. The lighter color of this one is a pretty good indicator that he's a passage (first year) bird. The darker breast on the other means he's a haggard (adult plumage). |
I dropped the gerbil baited trap and turned back and settled in to watch. Maybe one minute after the drop one of the males dropped down and hovered about 3 feet above the trap, then dropped down onto it. And sat there. And the gerbil sat there. And the kestrel still sat there. (They're both supposed to run around in a frenzy. The gerbil to get away from the bird, the bird to grab the gerbil and more importantly get his feet tangled up.) Perhaps they conversed in a way only hunter and prey can communicate.
Kestrel: You will be my breakfast, little rodent.
Gerbil: Fat chance. Go eat a bug.
Kestrel: What are these weird fuzzy things sticking up all around me?
Gerbil: *chuckle* You'll see.
Kestrel: Wait, what? My feet are tangled! I'm outta here! *hop flap*
That's where my heart skipped a beat. He had sat so quietly on the trap, no running around and footing at the gerbil so when he hopped I didn't think much of it. I kept waiting for him to move across the trap toward the gerbil. Then he hop-flapped again. The third hop-flap finally got through to my brain that he was caught in the noose and I started the car and pulled into the road. I was too far away for him to get spooked by the car but coincidentally, right as I started car he flew off the trap, right back up to the wire. I'm guessing that since he didn't run across the trap he wasn't tangled enough and when he just hopped straight up and down, the noose opened up and let him loose. If he had panicked and kept the pressure on the line, he would have been caught. *sigh*
I backed into my waiting spot again and waited. (That's why I call it a "waiting" spot. I wait there.) Well, after a little more looking at the trap, he flew down to the road and started pecking at bugs again like a dang chicken.
I drove around and found a couple other kestrels but nothing with a good setup for dropping the trap and none were looking hungry by then. The sun was up and warming everything and the bugs were on the move. Maybe next weekend we'll try again.
Monday, September 5, 2011
Labor Day
I figured I'd go out to try trapping first thing this morning and get the birds when they're hungry. Luckily my daughter's cat woke us up at 4:24am and I didn't get back to sleep til 5:30 so when my alarm went off at 6 I was ready to greet the day.
I got out at 6:40 and went to the places I had seen kestrels earlier. Nobody was around. I drove out near West Mountain and saw quite the bird menagerie. On a 4ft rail fence there was a red-tailed hawk perched. Twenty feet from the hawk was a male kestrel in a small fruit tree, and below them about twenty feet into the pasture were two cock pheasants. I'm not sure if the red-tail was scoping them out for breakfast or just dreaming but I didn't get to find out since as I blundered onto the scene the kestrel and pheasants scattered. I got a quick glance as the kestrel flew past and the morning sun on him just lit him up like Christmas! He was so beautiful, but not playing the trapping game. I headed back home to run some errands and do stuff, and just as I was pulling into the neighborhood saw a pair of kestrels on the very last power line. But I was about late for where I needed to be and passed them by.
I went back out to trap with my wife around 5pm. We drove to where I had seen the pair of kestrels and magpie on Saturday. They were there again sans-magpie. We drove right past them and dropped the trap and looped back around to a place where we could watch. That gave the birds time to come back to the wire. After 5-10 minutes the male flew down to the trap! I repeat FLEW DOWN TO THE TRAP! I about peed and managed to giggle like a school girl. This was the first official interest in the trap in my short career as kestrel trapper. But... (Yes, Pee Wee, everyone has a but.) ...he veered away when he got about 4 feet from the trap and went to land back on the wire. About 5 minutes later the female did the same thing. After that, they each took turns flying down and nabbing grasshoppers on the side of the road. Right across from the trap with two juicy meat-filled mice.
I called my sponsor and he wasn't around. I called a falconer that lives in my little town and he gave me some advice. He said that the appearance of the mice and the trap were scaring the kestrels since they weren't natural looking. Kestrels like their mice brown or black as a normal field mouse would be. These black and white marbled mice were just too strange for them. He suggested taking a black marker to the mice. No really. He said that. Also he thought that the metal color of the trap was too unnatural for them. He suggested I paint it brown or green or even black to at least make it a color that would be seen in nature. That will be a little work since I don't want to get the nooses painted because then they wouldn't slide very well. I'll see what I can do with a magic marker and a can of brown spray paint this week. I've also promised my boys a dollar for each live brown field mouse they can trap in the field at the end of our road.
After that conversation and waiting a few more minutes we picked up the trap and headed home. On the way we stopped by my sparrow trap and laid out some more seed and added water to the water cup. Still no sparrows in the trap. It's kind of a theme with me.
As we were driving the last little bit home we passed the same pole I did this morning with those to kestrels and they were there again. My wife tossed the trap out and we circled the block to come around and watch and within a few minutes the male buzzed the trap, veering away at the last second like the other two did earlier. But it still had the same affect on me. School girl giggles. My poor wife. However, instead of him flying back up to the pole, he landed on a nearby yard light; lower and closer to the trap. The female then took her turn and also landed lower and closer. Then they each took one more flight at the trap and headed back up to the pole. Their next flights were to catch grasshoppers in the field underneath them.
And so we went home, not as discouraged as on other days because we at least saw interest in the trap and got a reaction out of them. I'll paint the mice and trap and try again later this week. I'm guessing with newly tinted bait and trap, plus colder weather slowly creeping in I should get something this month. I'm trying to set a realistic expectation for myself rather than thinking I'm going through the express lane at Kestrel-Mart.
I got out at 6:40 and went to the places I had seen kestrels earlier. Nobody was around. I drove out near West Mountain and saw quite the bird menagerie. On a 4ft rail fence there was a red-tailed hawk perched. Twenty feet from the hawk was a male kestrel in a small fruit tree, and below them about twenty feet into the pasture were two cock pheasants. I'm not sure if the red-tail was scoping them out for breakfast or just dreaming but I didn't get to find out since as I blundered onto the scene the kestrel and pheasants scattered. I got a quick glance as the kestrel flew past and the morning sun on him just lit him up like Christmas! He was so beautiful, but not playing the trapping game. I headed back home to run some errands and do stuff, and just as I was pulling into the neighborhood saw a pair of kestrels on the very last power line. But I was about late for where I needed to be and passed them by.
I went back out to trap with my wife around 5pm. We drove to where I had seen the pair of kestrels and magpie on Saturday. They were there again sans-magpie. We drove right past them and dropped the trap and looped back around to a place where we could watch. That gave the birds time to come back to the wire. After 5-10 minutes the male flew down to the trap! I repeat FLEW DOWN TO THE TRAP! I about peed and managed to giggle like a school girl. This was the first official interest in the trap in my short career as kestrel trapper. But... (Yes, Pee Wee, everyone has a but.) ...he veered away when he got about 4 feet from the trap and went to land back on the wire. About 5 minutes later the female did the same thing. After that, they each took turns flying down and nabbing grasshoppers on the side of the road. Right across from the trap with two juicy meat-filled mice.
I called my sponsor and he wasn't around. I called a falconer that lives in my little town and he gave me some advice. He said that the appearance of the mice and the trap were scaring the kestrels since they weren't natural looking. Kestrels like their mice brown or black as a normal field mouse would be. These black and white marbled mice were just too strange for them. He suggested taking a black marker to the mice. No really. He said that. Also he thought that the metal color of the trap was too unnatural for them. He suggested I paint it brown or green or even black to at least make it a color that would be seen in nature. That will be a little work since I don't want to get the nooses painted because then they wouldn't slide very well. I'll see what I can do with a magic marker and a can of brown spray paint this week. I've also promised my boys a dollar for each live brown field mouse they can trap in the field at the end of our road.
After that conversation and waiting a few more minutes we picked up the trap and headed home. On the way we stopped by my sparrow trap and laid out some more seed and added water to the water cup. Still no sparrows in the trap. It's kind of a theme with me.
As we were driving the last little bit home we passed the same pole I did this morning with those to kestrels and they were there again. My wife tossed the trap out and we circled the block to come around and watch and within a few minutes the male buzzed the trap, veering away at the last second like the other two did earlier. But it still had the same affect on me. School girl giggles. My poor wife. However, instead of him flying back up to the pole, he landed on a nearby yard light; lower and closer to the trap. The female then took her turn and also landed lower and closer. Then they each took one more flight at the trap and headed back up to the pole. Their next flights were to catch grasshoppers in the field underneath them.
And so we went home, not as discouraged as on other days because we at least saw interest in the trap and got a reaction out of them. I'll paint the mice and trap and try again later this week. I'm guessing with newly tinted bait and trap, plus colder weather slowly creeping in I should get something this month. I'm trying to set a realistic expectation for myself rather than thinking I'm going through the express lane at Kestrel-Mart.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Mechanics
You may be wondering what a kestrel is, how you trap it, etc.
Kestrels used to be called sparrow hawks. They are the smallest falcon in North America. Wikipedia can tell you more about American Kestrels.
The type of trap I use is humane to both the bird and the bait. If all goes well, neither animal will be physically harmed. I can't speak for their mental condition. The trap is called a bal-chatri trap. Again, Wikipedia can tell you more details. And you can watch one in action with a beautiful male kestrel on YouTube.
Here is the trap that I made. It's about 12 inches square and 2 inches deep. Horseshoes weigh it down and fishing line is used for the nooses.
Kestrels used to be called sparrow hawks. They are the smallest falcon in North America. Wikipedia can tell you more about American Kestrels.
The type of trap I use is humane to both the bird and the bait. If all goes well, neither animal will be physically harmed. I can't speak for their mental condition. The trap is called a bal-chatri trap. Again, Wikipedia can tell you more details. And you can watch one in action with a beautiful male kestrel on YouTube.
Here is the trap that I made. It's about 12 inches square and 2 inches deep. Horseshoes weigh it down and fishing line is used for the nooses.
First real trapping day
My sponsor scheduled to go trapping with me Saturday mid-morning. We met up with no mishaps in time and got to it. We drove around for 1.5 hours and didn't get a chance to put the trap under anything. The birds just weren't to be found. We did see one or two but they took off and didn't look back. Typically they'll fly off and circle back to where they were perched when you drive by. These birds weren't typical I guess.
We both had errands and chores and such so we agreed to meet up in the early evening to try again.
My calls and messages to meet up were unanswered by the time we needed to get out and I finally decided to just go out by myself. I was quite nervous about that but my desire to get a bird and annoyance at another missed appointment got me out the door.
I drove to where I saw a male kestrel earlier that day and found him again. He was perched on a pole up on a hill which started right near the road. He was on the left and so I needed to drop the trap on the right side of the road in order for him to see it. Since I was by myself I had to drive past the bird a ways and turn around to be able to drop it out the left side. After the first drive by, the kestrel took off. I decided to drop the trap anyway. I drove past and turned around again to watch with my binoculars and see if he would come back to his perch. After 5 minutes or so he did. I waited for him to see the trap and while looking at it with my binoculars I realized that it was tilted at an angle such that the kestrel wouldn't really see much of it and surely not the mice inside. So I drove to the trap, repositioned it, and drove off again, scaring the kestrel in the process. I watched and waited and saw him show up again on the next pole down the line; one with no view of the trap. After a few minutes he was joined by a female and they sat there all fat and fluffy-like. Meanwhile, another bird did get interested in the trap. A magpie. I waited to see what it would do and if maybe this would get the kestrels interested. But after the magpie started poking at the mice, I had enough and went to rescue them. I didn't want to catch a magpie or have the mice damaged.
Next I drove to where we had gone the first night and saw the male flying around, calling out as he flew around the fields. He had no intention of landing so I drove on.
I found the spot my sponsor had taken me to earlier in the day. About this time I got a call from my sponsor that he had to go up to Salt Lake and got stuck in traffic on the way home. He was on his way out to find me now.
Meanwhile I saw a female on a wire nearby and thought I'd give it a try. I really want to start with a male but I thought that if the female hits the trap, I can at least have the experience of catching a bird and releasing it from the trap and handling it properly. Then I could let her go and keep trying for a male. Or I may just decide to keep a female. Who knew?
Well the setup couldn't have been more perfect. She didn't bump (fly off) as I slowed underneath her and dropped the trap about 20 feet past her. That was very surprising. I drove off 100 yards and watched and waited. After a few minutes she gathered herself to fly and I thought she was going for the trap. She ended up just flying down the wire to land directly over the trap. She spent a few more minutes inspecting it from above. After another 10 minutes of that a male joined her and she lost interest in the trap and they just hung out on the pole, not giving the trap another glance. My sponsor had arrived during all this and we decided that since the valley was in shadow at this point and it seemed all the birds were full and ready for bed, that we would make our way home and look along the way. We saw a few red-tailed hawks but no more kestrels.
We both had errands and chores and such so we agreed to meet up in the early evening to try again.
My calls and messages to meet up were unanswered by the time we needed to get out and I finally decided to just go out by myself. I was quite nervous about that but my desire to get a bird and annoyance at another missed appointment got me out the door.
I drove to where I saw a male kestrel earlier that day and found him again. He was perched on a pole up on a hill which started right near the road. He was on the left and so I needed to drop the trap on the right side of the road in order for him to see it. Since I was by myself I had to drive past the bird a ways and turn around to be able to drop it out the left side. After the first drive by, the kestrel took off. I decided to drop the trap anyway. I drove past and turned around again to watch with my binoculars and see if he would come back to his perch. After 5 minutes or so he did. I waited for him to see the trap and while looking at it with my binoculars I realized that it was tilted at an angle such that the kestrel wouldn't really see much of it and surely not the mice inside. So I drove to the trap, repositioned it, and drove off again, scaring the kestrel in the process. I watched and waited and saw him show up again on the next pole down the line; one with no view of the trap. After a few minutes he was joined by a female and they sat there all fat and fluffy-like. Meanwhile, another bird did get interested in the trap. A magpie. I waited to see what it would do and if maybe this would get the kestrels interested. But after the magpie started poking at the mice, I had enough and went to rescue them. I didn't want to catch a magpie or have the mice damaged.
Next I drove to where we had gone the first night and saw the male flying around, calling out as he flew around the fields. He had no intention of landing so I drove on.
I found the spot my sponsor had taken me to earlier in the day. About this time I got a call from my sponsor that he had to go up to Salt Lake and got stuck in traffic on the way home. He was on his way out to find me now.
Meanwhile I saw a female on a wire nearby and thought I'd give it a try. I really want to start with a male but I thought that if the female hits the trap, I can at least have the experience of catching a bird and releasing it from the trap and handling it properly. Then I could let her go and keep trying for a male. Or I may just decide to keep a female. Who knew?
Well the setup couldn't have been more perfect. She didn't bump (fly off) as I slowed underneath her and dropped the trap about 20 feet past her. That was very surprising. I drove off 100 yards and watched and waited. After a few minutes she gathered herself to fly and I thought she was going for the trap. She ended up just flying down the wire to land directly over the trap. She spent a few more minutes inspecting it from above. After another 10 minutes of that a male joined her and she lost interest in the trap and they just hung out on the pole, not giving the trap another glance. My sponsor had arrived during all this and we decided that since the valley was in shadow at this point and it seemed all the birds were full and ready for bed, that we would make our way home and look along the way. We saw a few red-tailed hawks but no more kestrels.
False starts
September 1st I planned to go with my sponsor to begin trapping. I was bonkers all day at work; couldn't focus and was totally excited. It turned out that his schedule was fuller than he expected which made us late getting out and we had maybe 30 minutes before dark. He was to get some sparrows from a guy he knew and this guy hadn't started trapping any yet. So my sponsor suggested grabbing a bunch of large grasshoppers for the trap and call him right back. My boys and I ran outside and found 5 largish hoppers and called him back but there was no answer. He called back quite a bit later than I hoped but we went out.
We drove to where I had seen a couple of kestrels hanging out during the last couple of weeks. I got in his car to drop the trap under a power pole where a male was perched. I left my daughter and son in our van on the road and took the keys with me. When we turned his car around to go drop the trap, the bird was long gone. And it was about dark. So we decided to call it quits. I got out of his car and he drove off and he was gone about 300 yards when I realized my keys had fallen out of my pocket in his car. I ended up calling my wife to bring the spare key out.
Before he left, my sponsor said that the next day he was sure his schedule was clear and we'd go out earlier. I went to the pet store on the way home from work and picked up a couple of black and white mice. I called and called my sponsor and left messages and he finally called me back after dark that night and said family had come into town.
Altogether not a good beginning to the trapping experience. And the level of communication between sponsor and apprentice leaves much to be desired. He's just not the type of person to be tied down to a phone or time schedules.
We drove to where I had seen a couple of kestrels hanging out during the last couple of weeks. I got in his car to drop the trap under a power pole where a male was perched. I left my daughter and son in our van on the road and took the keys with me. When we turned his car around to go drop the trap, the bird was long gone. And it was about dark. So we decided to call it quits. I got out of his car and he drove off and he was gone about 300 yards when I realized my keys had fallen out of my pocket in his car. I ended up calling my wife to bring the spare key out.
Before he left, my sponsor said that the next day he was sure his schedule was clear and we'd go out earlier. I went to the pet store on the way home from work and picked up a couple of black and white mice. I called and called my sponsor and left messages and he finally called me back after dark that night and said family had come into town.
Altogether not a good beginning to the trapping experience. And the level of communication between sponsor and apprentice leaves much to be desired. He's just not the type of person to be tied down to a phone or time schedules.
In the beginning...
...the earth cooled. Then last October I was driving home with my youngest boy and we saw a kestrel flying along-side the car. I told him what little I knew and when we got home we looked them up online. While looking at videos of kestrels doing their thing, we found one of a guy using a kestrel for falconry. For some reason this immediately drew me in.
For the next couple of weeks I searched the web to learn about falconry and if it was something I might realistically do. After lots of thought (and consultation with my wife) I decided to start down the road to becoming a falconer. This would give me a chance to learn more about kestrels and be a part of what they do.
I found many falconry web sites and learned what I could. I visited the Utah DNR web site to find out the regulations and requirements. I purchased books and study guides to prepare for the written test. I even began making equipment. I found someone who was willing to sponsor my two year apprenticeship and got everything ready. I passed the test in June and got the mews and equipment inspected and received my license and trapping permit.
And so begins my two years as an apprentice falconer.
For the next couple of weeks I searched the web to learn about falconry and if it was something I might realistically do. After lots of thought (and consultation with my wife) I decided to start down the road to becoming a falconer. This would give me a chance to learn more about kestrels and be a part of what they do.
I found many falconry web sites and learned what I could. I visited the Utah DNR web site to find out the regulations and requirements. I purchased books and study guides to prepare for the written test. I even began making equipment. I found someone who was willing to sponsor my two year apprenticeship and got everything ready. I passed the test in June and got the mews and equipment inspected and received my license and trapping permit.
And so begins my two years as an apprentice falconer.
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