The Accipiter - On The Park October 2005

On the Park - October 2005

Sam Hunt is the most recent falconer to have joined the Trust, while Tolkien is one of the newest members of our flying team. Sam’s article about training this bird shows us that they are a good match when it comes to youthful enthusiasm...

"TOLKIEN" OUR NEW STAR

I'm sure most of you will know about Tolkien by now, and regular readers of "The Accipiter" will remember him from previous hospital updates and August's edition of "On the Park". Tolkien, our juvenile Milky Eagle Owl was hatched at The Hawk Conservancy Trust at the end of April this year, and is already hugely popular with both the visitors and the staff. This is his story so far.

Tolkien at 27 days old
(Picture taken by Brenda Harris)

I'll start with some background information about this fascinating species of owl. The Milky Eagle Owl (Bubo lacteus), also known as the Giant Eagle Owl and Verreaux's Eagle Owl, is Africa's largest and heaviest owl. It is widely distributed in Africa, south of the Sahara, except for the driest deserts and most dense forests. This is a large and powerful owl that is, in effect, a nocturnal equivalent of the large diurnal eagles whose habitat it shares. It can take prey as large as Vervet Monkeys and even Secretary Birds by a combination of its immensely powerful grip, long sharp claws and power of its strike. It is also highly manoeuvrable, and is equally capable of a delicacy of touch sufficient to capture flying moths and other insects. A fact that I found particularly interesting myself is that it is the only predator of South African Hedgehogs! The territory of a pair of Milky Eagle Owls is as much as 17,000 acres, and they possess a territorial call that can carry for over three miles. A remarkable trait is that whole families, some with chicks from up to three years before, can be found clustered together. Young from previous years will aid the female parent in rearing the current chicks, whilst themselves continuing to be fed by the male parent.

TolkienTolkien – 47 days old and meeting the public
(Picture taken by Brenda Harris)

Tolkien was a product of a pair of Milky Eagle Owls that can be seen at The Hawk Conservancy Trust. The pair has successfully raised chicks for a number of years, and Tolkien's father is actually the oldest owl on the park, perhaps in his forties! With Duffy our European Eagle Owl reaching the end of his long and successful flying career at the park, it was necessary to find a suitable large owl to fly as a replacement. With a wingspan to rival all of the heavier species of eagle owl and a unique look, a Milky Eagle Owl chick was the perfect blend.

Tolkien was lifted from his aviary on the 27th April of this year and was already thought to be about 11 days old. He was soon passed over to one of our volunteers, Brenda Harris, and Hilary Smith to rear. The constant company and attention allowed Tolkien to become imprinted on humans, which would allow him to become manageable at the flying stage. I am very grateful for how 'stupidly tame' Tolkien has turned out because he is a very powerful owl and in the wild they are often locally referred to as "The Vicious Owl"!

On the 29th June Tolkien was moved into an aviary where he could begin his training and get used to the public – his new audience. This was the point at which I took control although I was always under the watchful eye of Brenda, who had become quite attached to Tolkien by this time. The following day, Tolkien had flying equipment attached to his ankles so that the training could begin.

Brenda putting on Tolkien's jesses for the first time

I have to admit; training Tolkien was not a difficult task. This was to my benefit because the very protective Brenda was closely examining his progress. The initial stages were to get him used to having his flying equipment changed and also to learn that his food always came from the glove. I also took him for regular walks around the park to see lots of different sights and experiences and to get used to being carried around on the fist. Once Tolkien had become 'hardpenned' and all of his flight feathers had lost their sheaths and the shafts inside the feather sockets had firmed up, he could start his flight training. By this time he knew that he only received food from my glove so the idea was to encourage him to fly to the fist. The initial part to this was the most difficult because he had to learn what his wings were for! After a lot of encouragement and patience we started with very small hops to my glove, and slowly increased the distance. Every time Tolkien did something right I rewarded him with a big meal - everything works on positive reinforcement.

All of these early stages of flying took place inside Tolkien’s aviary, but he had to learn to fly longer distances and in an open environment. Outside the aviary gave him the opportunity to fly in different surroundings and learn to adjust to different winds and environmental conditions. Working outside also allowed me to judge the best flying weight for Tolkien and how much food he required to maintain him at a good weight. If he were too light he wouldn’t have the energy to fly, and if he were too heavy he wouldn’t fly to me at all!

Once Tolkien was outside and flying free it was just a matter of building up his fitness by making him fly a little more each day, and also to stretch him to fly longer and longer distances. At the end of August came the big day – Tolkien’s first public appearance, and it was on the big stage – the “Valley of The Eagles” display.

Tolkien’s first flying display (Picture taken by Brenda Harris)

Tolkien flying in Reg’s Meadow
(Picture taken by Rob Horne)

This was exciting because Tolkien had never even flown in the meadow before! As expected he shone (nothing seems to phase this bird) and was very well received by the audience. Since his debut Tolkien is regularly thrilling audiences with his character and beautiful flights. He appeared on our recent members’ evening on the 3rd September – his first double shift, and has already become a favourite in our “Owl’s by Torchlight” evenings.

I am very pleased with Tolkien’s progress. It is rewarding to see a young bird developing and improving, and to see the reactions of the audiences. One of the best parts of training Tolkien was the constant supply of fruitcakes and cookies from Brenda, although it was really the owl that deserves all of the credit.

Click here for previous On the Park articles