hack

Hacking is a training method that helps young birds of prey reach their hunting potential by giving them exercise and experience. This technique is used to prepare the falcon to become an independent hunter. The sequence of the procedure includes captivity, releasing, flight, and either the falcon will be recaptured for falconry or released into the wild. This has also been adapted to other raptor species to preserve the population. Generally, falconers agree that hacked falcons are better and more preferred in the field. Hacking is beneficial , not only for the falconers, but for the bird itself and the species; however, there are some criticism and restrictions that come along with this method. Procedure Captivity Hacking sites are usually large tracts of land. These areas have to be similar to the natural surroundings of a wild nest. The young raptors are put in a “hack box”, boxes that contain a nest inside that protect them from predators and are usually placed on a high site, e.g. cliffs, atop poles. Eggs are either captive bred or taken from wild nests and the chicks are placed in the boxes a couple of weeks before they reach their fledge age of six weeks. Until then, the birds are closely looked after and provided food without too much human contact.