New 4-H year

Yesterday, we got three piglets.
And we named them........ Porker, Buddy, and Foxy.
They are the cutest things ever!
As they are every 4-H year.
So yesterday I saw the male red-tail taking a twig to the nest! He flew right over my head.

Awesome book

I really want a book and it is called The Goshawk by T. H. White. 
It looks like a pretty good book to me.
So you know how my favorite bird is the peregrine, well my second favorite is the goshawk.
I can't wait to get the goshawk book.

Awesome!

Yesterday I saw the red-tail's doing the courtship flight!!!!!!!
We may get chick's yet.
Next Wendsday me and my dad are going to my soon-to-be sponsors house, he is going to help me find a design for the bow perch I need for the red-tail.

How to get started in falconry

To start learning about falconry, I would . . .
1. Find and talk with a falconer in your area.
2. Go to the library and find books on falconry.
3. Go to your state's falconry website to learn the regulations for your state.

A few good falconry books are: The California Hawking Club Apprentice Study Guide, A Falconry Manual by Frank L. Beebe and Falconry Equipment by Bryan Kimsy and Jim Hodge. And, of course, you need a place to keep the hawk and a place where you can hunt!

So, today I went to the hawk nest and there was no sign of the teircel but I did get some awesome pics of the female. Here they are:

My favorite bird

My favorite raptor is the Peregrine Falcon. They are the most noble, and beautiful birds EVER!

Here is one of my favorite pictures of one.
I think the hood shown is a dutch hood.
Peregrines can go over 200 miles an hour.  That is almost as fast as a race car!

What got me interested in falconry

The one book that got me interested in this amazing sport was My Side of the Mountain.

This book is about a boy who runs away from home, finds a mountain to live on, hollows out an old tree to live in, and captures and trains a Peregrine Falcon.

Hopefully the Red Tails will have some chicks in the nest by Easter. I know of a falconer who may be able to become my sponsor.

Love is in the air (for the birds of prey)

At 9:00 a.m. I went to the Red-tail Hawk nest to check how the progress was going. Well, the female was in the nest! Here are some pics of the nest and the teircel.

Here is the tiercel flying away:

Here is the nest:

Here is the teircel on a pole close to the nest:

Pretty cool!!!!

Well, this is pretty cool having a blog of my own! My name is Zane, I am 11 years old, and I am hoping to become a falconer in the state of Idaho. I think falconry is the best hobby in the world.  It is 4000 years old, making it the oldest sport in the world.
There are red-tailed hawks nesting on a telephone pole, not vary far from my house. Hopefully, when I get my license, I'll be able to trap one of the immature birds. I think birds of prey are amazing; their strength and beauty are beyond anything I could have imagined possible.
My birthday is coming soon and I will be turning 12 , which means I will be able to get my falconry license pretty soon. Well, happy hawkin'!