Who hasn't been intrigued and interested in how a hunting hawk is trained? I, for one, have been captivated by the topic and decided to investigate. There is no Finnish literature available on the subject, and even less in terms of experiential advice and guidance. Nevertheless, there are mentions dating back hundreds of years in Finland regarding falconry, taxation and selling of hawks, and Finnish falconers. The information is scattered in bits and pieces in references, and there isn't a comprehensive history written definitively within the pages of a single book. However, hawks and eagles are tamed and used for hunting worldwide.
In modern times, falconers have organized themselves, and there is plenty of education and literature available. It is entirely up to your own diligence whether you want to learn the skill of falconry. An essential part of learning is the respect for hawks, eagles, and all living beings because without respecting your hawk and understanding its needs and well-being, you can never become a falconer. Understanding nature as a whole and realizing that humans are also a part of nature by existence. However, humans have, or at least should have, an understanding and responsibility for their actions as individuals and as part of a community. Humans are guided by the same basic needs as other animals in nature. In times before us, ethics in the struggle for survival has been a secondary matter.
It is different now because we have a responsibility. Meat obtained through hunting is ethical, clean, and environmentally friendly meat, as long as it is hunted under conditions of sustainable development. Human impacts on nature are tremendously significant, and most of the changes caused by humans in the ecosystem result from the environmental alterations made by humans. It is not enough that only birds of prey are protected and conserved; the entire food chain must thrive. Nowadays, wildlife management, habitat restoration, and hunting based on sustainable development are fortunately common practice and self-evident. Passionate love for falconry and the pure respect for birds of prey, as well as the work done for them, also protect the entire ecosystem.
The art of falcon taming and hunting with falcons has disappeared from Finland a long time ago, or has it? There is concrete evidence of falconers in our history, with information found in documents such as the Swedish king's tax records. Perhaps the saying "one must feed it like a leather-hooded hawk" dates back to those times. This expression revolves around something that requires special attention. Additionally, there are mentions of falconers at Turku Castle.
Forests and hunters still exist! Could it be time to revive an ancient hunting culture? With increasing knowledge, I believe that Finnish falconry will experience a renaissance.
There probably was never a widespread falconry culture in Finland, as maintaining a falcon was costly. Falcons require a relatively large amount of meat daily. During lean years, the trained falcon wouldn't settle for the bark bread of the wilderness dwellers, so the chances of keeping a falcon were not very high. On the other hand, in a country with low game density, there were more efficient hunting methods. Forest game birds and hares were easier to catch with traps and snares. In addition to food, falcons require attention, and the trainer needs skill to handle them.
Falconry was more of a pastime for royal manors and clearly the upper class, but it's important to remember that even commoners produced hobby equipment. Falcons were sometimes used to pay taxes to the king. Falcons were even sent from Finland as far as Southern Europe. In many Central European countries, owning a hunting falcon was linked to social status. If in former times a falcon could be likened to money, a large sum of money, it's unlikely that its training was cultivated; rather, the advantage was wanted to be kept within oneself or the family.
Falconry has indeed been practiced with falcons in Finland in more recent times as well. The most famous figure is Dr. Fritz Remmler, born in the Karelian Isthmus, who had a large animal park in Kajaani from 1928 to 1939. Remmler was a passionate falconer with eagles and falcons, and he sent trained eagles to countries such as France and Germany. In Kajaani, Remmler used a Finnish Spitz and an eagle in cooperation for falconry, and they were extremely successful in hunting hares. Over the years, I have noticed that falconry has not entirely disappeared as a form of hunting in Finland, but it has been fragmented and pursued by individual hunters, continuing until the protection of the goshawk in the 1990s.
We are a member of the International Association for Falconry
