Zena and Apollo, our Merlin Falcons, came to Quails Run Farm in the spring of 2006 and are now key to eliminating damage caused to our cherry crop by a variety of birds, most particularily starlings. The Merlin Falcon, also once known as the Pigeon Hawk, is the second smallest of the falcon family Although petite, they are extremely clever and ambitious hunters, relying on a variety of birds as their principal source of food. The larger females are capable of taking birds as large as pigeons; however, starlings and songbirds are the mainstay of their diet.

Arriving on the farm as downy grey hatchlings, the birds were kept in an Easter basket in our kitchen for the first few months. Being fed by hand and exposed to the rigours of family life, the birds quickly adapted, tolerating noisy kids, the TV, errant soccer balls and our cat Chopper (we’re not sure who is more afraid of whom!). They proved to be very good company over this period and a never ending source of wonder as they fledged (grew their feathers) and turned into the sleek and beautiful birds of prey they are today. Once the falcons were fully fledged and sufficiently socialized, we moved them out to their mew located behind our house. Their socialization, however, remains an ongoing process and we are continually introducing them to new situations, such as riding with us on our quad and tractor and meeting farm guests.

The training of the falcons began in the fall of 2006, only a few months after becoming capable of free flight. The training process started with the birds taking short flights on a “tether” line to a small piece of “food” attached to a leather “lure”. The lure has the shape of a bird silhouette and , gradually, the falcons associated the lure and the flight with a food reward, ultimately attacking the lure on the wing.

In 2007 we used the falcons for bird control in our orchard. This involved releasing the birds to free flight and then encouraging them to fly to different parts of the orchard by swinging the lure and calling to them (which embarrassingly is “Here birdie birdie birdie”, because this is what we always said to them when feeding). Only once has one of the falcons gone AWOL; luckily we were able to track him down in the neighbouring hills through the use of radio telemetry. Although our system only involved one flight each per day, this was a sufficient deterrent and we experienced next to nothing in the way of bird damage to our crop.

We have come a long way with our falcons, considering we only first became aware of their potential role in controlling bird pests about three years ago. It has been an amazing experience and we welcome the opportunity to share it in part with our guests, who are welcome to come and feed them, take pictures of them or simply view them either in their mew or during their flights.