There was probably a reason why the falconer took that chick. Falconers in
the state of Washington are very close knit and they would NEVER allow
illegal taking of raptors or any type of illegal activity, because one
falconer unfortunatelly, represents all falconers to the public. There is no
falconer in the world that goes un-noticed, just because a falconer needs a
sponsor (that's how it is in WA and the U.S.), and word gets around that a
new falconer is on board, and whether that falconer decides to stay present
and known in the falconry community, there is always going to be falconers
that won't loose track and allow a "bad" falconer to bring down the
wonderful "hobby!!"

Blake Iverson
Arlington, WA
coopershwk at hotmail.com




>From: Paul Webster <paul.webster at attbi.com>
>Reply-To: paul.webster at attbi.com
>To: tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
>Subject: Falconers and Peregrine Chicks
>Date: Fri, 06 Dec 2002 08:32:20 -0800
>
>Should the Washington State Wildlife Commission allow falconers to take up
>to 5% of peregrine chicks (or eyasses, as they're known in the arcane
>language of falconry)? I'm aware that falconers are already taking
>peregrine chicks -- one of the Seattle chicks was taken in spring 2002,
>according to a relative of the falconer in question. So the question might
>be phrased better this way: Should the state bless an illegal practice
>that is already current? And would that blessing encourage hawkers to take
>even more chicks than the new regulation would allow?
>
>Falconers, as users of the resource, probably shouldn't be taken as the
>unbiased final authority on what the impact of a new state quota might be.
>The concern expressed by Rob Sandelin is a legitimate one, which state
>officials should consider in making their decision. Probably the safest
>course would be to wait a year or two until the impact of the West Nile
>virus on our falcons is better understood.
>
>Paul Webster
>Seattle
>paul.webster at attbi.com


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