The Gyrfalcon

WINNER OF THE WILDLIFE SOCIETY'S 'BEST SCIENCE BOOK 2006' AWARD This book is the first monograph on one of the most beautiful and admired birds in the world. The Gyrfalcon is the world's largest and most powerful falcon - a truly awe-inspiring bird which inhabits the ferociously inhospitable Arctic taiga, from Greenland and Iceland right across Siberia and northern Canada. Its plumage varies from a dark mottled grey to pure white - the white birds in particular are coveted by birders and falconers. Like other titles in the series, it covers all aspects of the species' biology, taxonomy, distribution, status and historical associations with mankind. The result is an exhaustively researched and enthrallingly readable biography of a spectacular bird, illustrated throughout with photographs and line drawings.

The gyr is the largest, fastest and arguably the most beautiful falcon in the world. For centuries man has been driven to acquire live specimens from their Arctic territory for sport and even as currency. This is a study of the species, using drawings, sketches, paintings and photographs. The author examines the gyrfalcon's role in natural history, its place in literature and its long-established use in falconry.

Gyrfalcons and humans have shared a remarkable relationship since prehistoric times. These extraordinary arctic falcons have been revered, coveted as an item of commerce, persecuted, and enjoyed as a spectacle of sport for at least ten thousand years. Today, climate change has brought new challenges, with habitat in the far north changing rapidly as natural cycles begin to break down. Drawn from over thirty years of study and observation, this in-depth study provides a comprehensive view of the gyrfalcon’s place in the arctic ecosystem, including their inextricable link to their primary pray, the ptarmigan, and their antagonistic relationship with golden eagles. It explores the connection the bird has had with humanity in both legend and practice, and the challenges it faces as its habitat continues to change. This definitive look at the gyrfalcon shows us both sides of the majestic bird: the master of its domain and a threatened species facing an uncertain future.

A book for falconers that details the practices and principles of training the Gyrfalcon to achieve lofty pitches and hunt wild quarry with great success. These two writers have solved, and committed to writing, the necessary steps to produce a high-flying Gyrfalcon that is supremely adjusted to life with a falconer.

An action-packed, contemporary novel about surviving in the wilderness. Thirteen-year-old Karma is desperate to become a certified falconer. At her dad's bird education center, she helps give demonstrations to guests and can fly the birds. But when her favorite rescued falcon, Stark, hurts Karma, her parents insist that they return the bird to its previous owner--in Canada. On the way to bring Stark back, a car accident in the middle of nowhere leaves Karma's dad trapped, and it's up to Karma to find a way to rescue him and her younger brother. When Karma loses her way trying to get help, she crosses paths with Cooper, a troubled teenaged boy. Lost for three days, the two figure out how to survive, and Karma teaches Stark to hunt like an actual bird of prey. Karma may be closer than she thinks to becoming a real falconer and having a real friend.

A “well-written, engaging detective story” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review) about a rogue who trades in rare birds and their eggs—and the wildlife detective determined to stop him. On May 3, 2010, an Irish national named Jeffrey Lendrum was apprehended at Britain’s Birmingham International Airport with a suspicious parcel strapped to his stomach. Inside were fourteen rare peregrine falcon eggs snatched from a remote cliffside in Wales. So begins a “vivid tale of obsession and international derring-do” (Publishers Weekly), following the parallel lives of a globe-trotting smuggler who spent two decades capturing endangered raptors worth millions of dollars as race champions—and Detective Andy McWilliam of the United Kingdom’s National Wildlife Crime Unit, who’s hell bent on protecting the world’s birds of prey. “Masterfully constructed” (The New York Times) and “entertaining and illuminating” (The Washington Post), The Falcon Thief will whisk you away from the volcanoes of Patagonia to Zimbabwe’s Matobo National Park, and from the frigid tundra near the Arctic Circle to luxurious aviaries in the deserts of Dubai, all in pursuit of a man who is reckless, arrogant, and gripped by a destructive compulsion to make the most beautiful creatures in nature his own. It’s a story that’s part true-crime narrative, part epic adventure—and wholly unputdownable until the very last page.