

Japanese Falconry - Petiver
http://bibliodyssey.blogspot.com/2015/05/japanese-falconry.html

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prestonbriggs
I don't know the history of falconry. It seems unlikely that such an esoteric
activity would evolve in multiple locations; more likely that Japanese
falconry and European (not to mention US) falconry evolved from some shared
ancestor. So whose bright idea was it? Do we have a clue?

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prestonbriggs
Hmm, well, Wikipedia suggests Mesopotamia, about 2000 BC.

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prestonbriggs
Or maybe Iran, as early as 8,000 BC. Astonishing. Or maybe Mongolia?

Apparently the conquistadors noted the Aztecs using trained hawks, so some
parallel development seems plausible.

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lambdaelite
One neat thing about modern falconry is that while the materials used (e.g.,
stainless steel for perches) are modern, the designs and techniques haven't
changed much if at all.

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fallinghawks
Basic training technique really hasn't changed much, very true. There are new
techniques (balloon and kite) for getting falcons to fly to a high point more
quickly, and now drones are being experimented with. In the past 10-20 years
we've also been using motors (drills, winches) to drag lures (a dummy prey-
like item) to simulate a chase. These techniques don't have full acceptance,
though; there's a lot of dispute about their value when it comes to actual
hunting.

We did get rid of certain items deemed hazardous: the screen perch, which
really requires constant supervision because raptors can hang from it and not
be able to get back up, and single-piece jesses were replaced with a 2-part
system where the jess part is removable. Should the bird get lost it can take
the jesses out and not be hampered by them.

The main innovation is radio telemetry. Bells are still handy for immediate
feedback of your bird's location, but telemetry is fantastic for falcons which
can fly 20 miles away in a half hour if they feel like it, or hawks that will
sit tight in a thicket on quarry and be completely invisible.

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lambdaelite
I had forgotten about balloons and kites, that is a good point. Only other
thing I can think of in training that isn't traditional is using operant
conditioning, but that was uncommon when I was still practicing.

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fallinghawks
I dunno, is operant conditioning just a formal term for what was always
practised? The only negative conditioning is the lack of a reward?

(And what did you fly? A pleasant surprise to meet another falconer on HN. I
flew Harrises and various accipiters. Lost my last bird in January to a wild
peregrine and am considering a female sharpy for my next bird.)

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tomcam
They applied crushed mica to some of the illustrations, and the book
description says it was particularly effective in pictures of the wings.

Also, I like the bear suit.

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fallinghawks
I think the "bear suit" is a traditional Japanese raincoat made of grass.
[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mino_%28straw_cape%29](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mino_%28straw_cape%29)

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fallinghawks
Sweet. Thank you.

