Spend much time in the Sacramento Valley and you’ll become aware of a healthy population of sleek, strong and swift raptors. Rice fields, for example, are home to fourteen different raptor species.
Desiring a closer look at these elusive birds, our family ventured to the foothills east of Marysville to West Coast Falconry, one of only three falconry centers in the U.S. that are registered by the Fish & Wildlife Service. It’s a little off the beaten path but is a paradise for raptor lovers.
Falconry is the art of utilizing game birds to hunt for prey. Its first known use was recorded by symbols on clay tablets 10,000 years ago in Sumatran culture. Five thousand years ago, Genghis Khan used falcons to gather food to help feed his troops.
The star of our trip was a Harris Hawk, described by National Geographic as “wolves of the air,” due to their hunting style and dedication to extended family. Weighing just 1½ pounds, Don Diego compensated for his lack of weight through senses that would make a super hero jealous.
Diego can spot small game from a mile and a half away, see mouse trails via infrared and ultraviolet light and when he finds his intended lunch, he can grab it with his talons – packing gripping pressure of 300 pounds per square inch. All told, Diego can take down prey weighing up to five pounds – pheasants more than three times his size!
After receiving expert instruction, our family donned thick leather gloves, had morsels of raw meat placed on them and then summoned Diego. It was marvelous to see how effortlessly he glided, swooped in and landed on each junior falconer to gobble up his treat.
I highly recommend this entertaining natural history lesson. Unless you’re a vole, coming nose to beak with a hawk is a joy worth crowing about.
Jim Morris is Communications Manager for the California Rice Commission. Jim has worked in communications for more than 20 years. When he’s not on the job, he enjoys his family, faith, football, outrageous monster stories and running marathons.
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