As this is my first post on the Birds and People blog I thought I might take this opportunity just to say to any photographers that may be reading this that we will have a picture list detailing images we want for the book, but this will not be available for at least another two years or so. I have received a number of emails from interested photographers requesting news on which pictures we are seeking. We will be looking for very few straight bird images, many requests will be very specific to illustrate a particular story. If you do have images that illustrate the relationship with people and birds, whether it be a great image of a Purple Martin colony in some ones yard or a native Indian wearing ceremonial feathers as two random examples then do please get in touch. I am keen to build contacts with photographers around the world who may have those hard to find images.

I have covered a number of stories so far this year, traveling to Nebraska in April with Mark to cover the Sandhill Cranes on the Platte and lekking prairie chicken. In February I visited Hokkaido to shoot Red-crowned Cranes, Steller’s Eagles and Blakiston’s Fish Owl. A number of other trips have been equally successful, but perhaps the most memorable was a visit to Mongolia from which I have just returned. I travelled to the Altai Mountains in western Mongolia to shoot the annual Eagle Hunters Festival held in Ulgii on the first weekend of October each year, this is the story of festival day.

Towards dusk on the day prior to the festival I watched the hunters coming in off the steppe on horseback, many galloping in pairs, some four abreast each with an eagle on their glove, all heading for town. That night a family group of Kazakh musicians came to our Ger camp entertaining us with some rousing Kazakh folk songs. From each instrument hung a bunch of feathers which I later discovered were Eagle Owl feathers. Indeed many of the Kazakh’s carried these, some had them in their hats, my driver had a big bunch hanging from his rear view mirror. They are important good luck charms to muslims in this part of western Mongolia as they believe the intricate patterning on the feathers resembles the letters from the Khoran. These bunches of feathers are highly sought after. Dalai Han an eagle hunter living in this part of the Altai mountains, told me he hunts Eagle Owls with his eagle though they are now scarce. When he does catch an owl the feathers are distributed among family and close friends.

Awaking just before dawn on festival day I crawled out of my sleeping bag and stepped out of the Ger, the brilliant night sky with its bright shining stars was receding to a beautiful pink dawn. Soon after breakfast we headed into town.

Eagle hunters on horseback were starting to converge on the town square. Some dressed in beautiful fur coats, the coats of mainly foxes caught by their eagles, others in Kazakh dress with fur trimmed hats. Some of these nomads had travelled nearly 100 miles to be here, this being a big social event. Locals and a few tourists mingled among the hunters, then at 11 am music started playing from a stage at the head of the square, the hunters surged forward, spectators scrambled out of their way. Lining up they were addressed by the President of the Eagle Hunters Association, this year a record 82 hunters had gathered. Once the address was over they were led around the square by a flag carrying official from the association, to music and loud cheers the horses thundered past doing four circuits before stopping at the stage again. Then off they went again before dispersing.

I raced back to the area of steppe above our Ger camp where a parade ring and stage had been set up. An archery competition was already underway. Eagle hunters were starting to arrive from the town and register their attendance. Once all the hunters had assembled, the first competition began, for the best turned out hunter and horse. Each took it in turns to gallop up to the stage where judges held up scores, the best receiving all nines. During lunch a horse race among local nomads took a route miles across the steppe around a distant mountain and back. At the base of a hill hunters gathered many flying their eagles short distances to the glove in readiness for the next competition. This entailed the eagle being taken halfway up the hillside and the bird then being called by it’s owner on horseback below, those that descended the quickest while the rider was moving were given the highest marks, those that did well galloped at full tilt towards the crowd and stage holding their eagles aloft.

Before this competition had begun, spectators had been warned to remove any red clothing as the eagles are attracted to the colour. A couple of unlucky children ignored this plea. The first a boy was swooped on by an eagle and many people rushed to his aid, remarkably he was unhurt despite his blood curdling screams. Another boy was targeted but just before the eagle hit home he had the presence of mind to run between two vehicles and dive to the ground. A third young girl happened to run across the parade ring just as an eagle was released to fly to the glove. Wearing an orange top and being small and running away this proved too irresistible to the eagle which hit her with such force that she lifted off the ground falling in a heap, the eagle clutching her coat which then tried to lift her off the ground. Spectators pulled the eagle off her and although physically not hurt she suffered shock.

The day ended with a game of Kurbar a form of tug of war with a goat skin while on horseback. This was highly entertaining and with the crowd becoming highly charged over the contests the Police had to step in and control some more over enthusiastic spectators who tried to influence the result.

During the day I photographed many different aspects of the festival and interviewed a couple of hunters which was fascinating. One of the highlights was encountering the family pictured below who owned a Saker Falcon. Note the eagle Owl feathers in the hats of the girls who are in traditional Kazakh costume. A few other stories resulted from this trip. One of the most interesting being the custom of those in the Gobi Desert hunting Henderson’s Ground Jays for their livers which are prized for medicinal purposes. This proved a difficult bird to see and I only glimpsed one individual that flew before I was within a couple of hundred metres, no doubt they have good reason to be shy!