An update on Newgrange Falconry birds of prey
Hi,
Sorry it has been a while since I last updated this blog. We will be displaying and flying some of our birds at Trim Hot Air Fiesta over the Easter weekend Sat, Sun and Mon. It promises to be a brilliant festival. Check out the schedule on www.trimfiesta.com/schedule
We have had some lovely visitors on the hill lately for a falconry lesson/experience. The weather was really warm when our groups of American visitors from Iowa, Minnesota and Pennsylvania were with us. As soon as they were gone, the weather changed. We had an Irish couple who really enjoyed themselves but were freezing on the hill yesterday as it was bitterly cold. I hope they have thawed out now!
Here is an update on some of the birds:-
Donna, our female peregrine is performing some great acrobatics while flying to the lure.
Odin, our golden eagle has finished his hunting season and we have put him in for the molt.
Bartina, our female barn owl laid 4 eggs. There is only one left now, unfortunately.
Flint, our female Bengal Eagle owl laid 3 eggs, although she had no male! She is still sitting on her eggs!
The harris hawks are doing brilliant flying. We are really happy with them.
Alana, one of our lanner falcons went AWOL last week while out flying. Thank God for telemetry:)
Cindy, our Vermiculated eagle owl is a real little cutie. When we ‘hoot’ at her she ‘hoots. back.
I will post some more updates soon.
Barbara
Newgrange falconry Birds of prey
Hi,
Odin, our golden eagle was ‘poetry in motion’ when he was flying yesterday. Three of the harris hawks were out hunting. Tom and Zena caught a pheasant!
We held a private falconry display for Joe O’Reilly Tours in the beautiful Killruddery Gardens last Saturday. As we put the birds on static display, a wild sparrowhawk caught a pigeon about 50 metres away from us, mantled it and proceeded to eat it. He was not perturbed by bigger prey ‘on static display’ nearby!!
The flying display went really well with our french visitors really getting involved in the displays. As it started to get dark, my little favourite, our reliable barn owl, Bartina, flew into action and, as usual, flew beautifully. She is always a huge hit when flying to the fist and sitting on the glove for photos. (She has been photographed 10′s of 1000′s of times at this stage with many more to go)!
We may be doing some kind of display for Drogheda’s ‘Local Heros’ this weekend. I will post it on twitter and facebook when I have confirmation.
Barbara
Birds of prey falconry lesson
It never ceases to amaze me just how spectacular birds of prey are. They flew really well at the falconry lesson today on Mullaghteelin hill. The hill has spectacular views (and it’s own climate). One of the lanner falcons chased a crow. Three harrises flew really well together and Zena went off hunting. Here is a taster of the photos that Gerry took of his day with our birds. What do you think of them. I will upload some more photos soon. Enjoy!!
Update on our birds
Bow our eurasian eagle owl flying to the glove (see the other glove she took from the ‘take-off’ hand!
Hi,
Bow our eurasian eagle owl is settling in well, She is still a little bit shy but not aggressive at all and she is flying to the glove and sitting on the glove without any problems. She is one spectacular bird to see flying. Her wings are amazing.
Cindy the vermiculated eagle owl is also in training and is flying to the glove. She is a little beauty.
Donna, our young peregrine is flying really well to the lure. The other day, she was blown a kilometre away in a strong wind. Luckily enough, she managed to make her way back to Brian.
Our male peregrine, Scott, dropped his last primary feather, so he will be back in training soon.
Brian has to put new jesses on Odin, our golden eagle. So he will be back in training soon. He is a really awesome bird to see on the glove and also amazing to watch in flight.
All the Harris Hawks and the other falcons are flying really well.
Brian is on the hill today with 10 or our birds. They will all have a turn flying. Some of the harrises will fly together. Tom and Oscar and Zena fly really well together. For some reason, Alamo does not like to fly with Oscar, so we fly him without Oscar. A windy day sees some spectacular flying from the falcons, especially one of our lanners, Alana. She is brilliant to watch in the wind.
Hope the rain stays away for the lesson tomorrow.
Barbara
The Spirit of Folk Festival
Hi Everyone,
We were invited to hold a falconry display with our beautiful birds of prey at this lovely venue in Dunderry, Co. Meath. It was a lovely day. Very holistic, in a wonderful setting with really nice and interesting people who created a lovely ambiance. We really enjoyed ourselves and I am sure the birds did also. Thanks to everyone who interacted and participated with us during the flying displays.
See our amazing birds of prey at the Spirit of Folk festival, Co. Meath, Ireland
Hi Everyone. This weekend why don’t you come along, say hello and interact with some of our amazing birds. We will be there on Saturday. It promises to be a great weekend. Looking forward to seeing you there and introducing you to some of the newest arrivals to Newgrange Falconry!!
Lessons on the hill
Yesterday, Saturday 17th Sept was a great day with our Irish, English and Dutch customers on the beautiful hill. It is brilliant to witness such enthusiasm for the noble art of falconry and the enthusiasm shown towards our wonderful birds.
Today, was another great, although a bit wet at times, day on the hill. ‘You are as young as you feel’ and that can certainly be said today when a beautiful 70 year old and her family had a birthday bash on the hill with our amazing birds.
Update on Bow and Cindy
Bow and Cindy have settled in really well. Bow, our eurasian eagle owl is flying to the glove. She is still a little shy but we are building up her confidence with plenty of handling and flying. Cindy, our vermiculated owl is a real, little cutie!!
I will post some photos soon.
Welcome to Bow our Eurasian Eagle Owl
Bow our new Eurasian Eagle Owl arrived to us last Thursday from the UK. She is an absolute beauty. She is 3 years old and has a quiet temperament. She is not agressive and has done some flying display work already. We took her to a show yesterday! She is a star in the making. I will post some photos of her soon.
Update on Cindy
Cindy our new vermiculated owl has settled in really well. She sits on the glove and chats away!! She is a little gem.
