Hello to all my falconry enthusiasts. Faloners typically do not trap until between October and December; birds trapped during this time of the year are referred to as 'passage' birds. Most states have regulations that allow a falconer to trap a young bird prior to October though, and a raptor trapped prior to October would typically be referred to as a 'brancher' or a 'fledgling'.
I have decided to trap an early raptor this year and I am targeting late July or August. My hopes are to trap a large hen redtail (first year bird of course) and take advantage of the early trapping to assure a slightly calmer bird. There are pros and cons to this early trapping strategy. Pros are a bird that does not have pre-defined limits of its hunting ability in its mind already, possibly a calmer (slightly less wild) bird, and possibly a slightly easier to train bird. None of these factors are guaranteed but they are normally the hallmarks of a young raptor.
The cons include the danger of having a raptor imprint on you, a bird who has not had two or three months to hunt on its own, meaning it is very inexperienced. This would lead to a slower first season of hawking, as you are literally present as the bird learns to hunt. So it is a trade off and I have never taken a young redtail - all of mine were taken in October / November as passage birds. Now I am beginning construction of my mews since I'm in a new property. Exciting!!! :0)
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