A Tailor Made 'Hood To Fit' Falcons

ZUMA Press Inc - 1011 days ago
A Tailor Made 'Hood To Fit' Falcons
May 03, 2009 - Essex, England - A Lanner Falcon wears a leather hood to keep it calm during the essential daily routine of weighing it and cleaning its enclosure. A tailor made 'hood to fit' is given to all falcons. This falcon is based at The Tropical Wings animal centre in Essex, England. They are very sensitive creatures, and can become very stressed if a lot of activity is going on around them. Giving them security of a hood is the best way to keep falcons happy and comfortable. The scientific or Latin name (biarmicus) comes from the fact that the Lanner has a sharp raised point located on its beak's edge about half the distance from the end of its beak to the corner of the mouth. Thus it is doubly armed with two cutting weapons on its beak. Ironically, nearly all falcons have this same type of beak structure. They grow to a length of 43-50cm with a wingspan of 95-105cm. It usually hunts by horizontal pursuit, rather than swooping from a height, and takes mainly birds in flight