Book Review: Understanding the Bird of Prey by Nick Fox

BIAZA bird of prey experts review Nick Fox's new advanced edition 'Understanding the Bird of Prey...'

The first edition of this book was written in 1995 and as Nick Fox states: a lot has happened since then.
The book has been called 'Understanding the Bird of Prey' as it is providing the basic principles of Falconry and can be adapted to suit the reader's own circumstances. There are eleven chapters that cover topics such as Development and Behaviour, Flight Training, Managing a Breeding Programme and Physical Condition. 

The first few chapters of the book are about the actual birds. How they physically fly, feather development, breeding programmes, their senses, their biology and how they learn. The chapters go into great depth about these topics and are incredibly useful to reference. The book also contains relevant discussions around tethering, weight management and training. The book states' that tethering is a necessary evil and as soon as it isn't needed, the bird should be free-lofted' Positive reinforcement training was also discussed and how this is the prefered method of learning for the birds. Alongside these statements, the physical condition of the bird was an interesting chapter to read. Although weight management was talked about, it was also surrounded by how to score your bird's body condition, how to read their behaviour and understanding the bird's motivation first rather than just using weight management as a tool. This is refreshing to hear and shows how methods are improving to optimism welfare.

The book continues to go into great detail about the intricate details surrounding some of the more advanced sides of bird of prey management. Highlighting the different strategies for training complex behaviours relating to flight styles as well as great time and detail being put into explaining areas such as nutrition which are often overlooked or over simplified, thanks to the extreme detail the book goes into there is something for everyone no matter there experience with a mixture of accessible data presented clearly through the use of imagery and graphs, accompanying this is a mixture of the authors personal experiences and anecdotes which makes for an engaging and enjoyable read while still being highly informative. 

The later parts of the book take much more of a focus onto the history of this ancient sport and the relationship it has had with those who practice it through the centuries. Not only is this enlightening of past traditions and methods of management it shows the vital importance this way of working with animals has had. There is information throughout that will have a lasting impact on any reader no matter their background.

Overall, the book was enjoyable to read and a pleasant surprise. Nick Fox's personality and humour shines through when he describes stories and his own experiences with his birds. Suitable for beginners and experienced Falconers, this book offers a fantastic resource for reference to gain knowledge and a greater insight into understanding their own Birds of Prey.

Understanding the Bird of Prey (new advanced version) can be found here.

Book reviews reflect the views of their author and are not a reflection of BIAZA's positions.