Simon Thomsett

On the 8th August, I returned with Rosy from his eye exam at Kikuyu. It was late afternoon and Rosy was still dopey from being anesthetised. I went, as usual, to release Tim and Lucy, the pair of Lanner Falcons, for their afternoon flight. They had a set routine, rushing off together and sometimes fighting, until they reach the windmill about 1km from the house. There, Lucy likes to jump into the muddy runoff and have a bathe and drink. Then, she and Tim perch (shamefully) in the only exotic tree in the entire region……an ugly Pepper Tree.

Lucy

They either wait here until I catch up, or go off causing havoc among the Crowned Plovers. The plovers go through the same routine each afternoon, and will even rise up in mock panic when I appear without the falcons. Nothing ever happens to them for they are much to clued-up.

On this evening, however, I had to sit with Rosy holding his head up so that he could breathe easily. I often leave the falcons to their own devises and as darkness approaches, stand outside and yell for them to return. There was one thing slightly different from usual. Tim took off after a Black Shouldered Kite and bullied him to drop a mouse he had just caught. I saw this happening down wind of the house. I had Rosy in my arms and was unable to walk around the back of the house quick enough to see what happened next. Tim had the mouse in his talons and was being pursued by Lucy, who had piracy on her mind. The next thing I knew, Tim was coming back empty handed. Lucy had gone, no doubt carrying the mouse off to eat it in peace.

A few years ago I had two passage female Lanners that would consistently chase Black Shouldered Kites and pirate prey from them. They got to be so complacent that they would fly off and sit in a bush waiting. From as far as a few kilometers they would start the chase. It is termed klepto–parasitism, in fancy English. Anyway it ruined every day outing, and ended up with the two of them zooming off on their own to a life of thievery.

Lucy never came back. I wrote to Laila to tell her that Tim was sad, and she responded by asking how I knew that, claiming I might be anthropomorphizing (again!). The way I can tell is that Tim now doesn’t sit on his night perch as before…….closer to Lucy’s side. During his flights out, he never goes up wind to the windmill, but goes straight like an arrow far downwind and out of sight, in the direction we last saw Lucy. Sometimes he is out for hours and I suspect a secret affair, or at least I hope so. He did this yesterday too, now a week later.

Lucy

I had hoped Tim and Lucy would be a pair, and managing them this way would, I am sure, oblige them at some point to become a territory holding breeding pair. It is still far too early for this to happen, although Tim and Lucy were beginning to moult into their adult plumage. I am happy that Lucy did the predictable. She is very fit. A few days before she and Tim snagged a full grown Yellow-neck. Tim overhauled and hit it hard, and Lucy came in behind and tackled it to the ground. I ran up to see the francolin already dead, and Lucy being rather badly behaved towards Tim who ran around trying to get his share.

Lucy has the best chance now. She would have died in her cage had she not been given this chance, which she was always (like Tim) free to take. I have no misgivings about loosing her and wish her well. She may return.

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The small male Black Sparrowhawk with spinal injuries died recently. Quasimodo was very ill. On post mortem, I noted that the urates were hard and granular with bleeding extending from his kidneys to the vent. He had always a history of difficulty in defecating. For the first few months, he had to have a moist cotton bud inserted in the vent to excise the feces and urates.

When I was away in Costa Rica, he was put in a low and quiet shed to moult. He moulted nicely, and when I returned I was happy to see him sporting a new white chest and a good array of smart tail feathers. I went inside the shed with him and he jumped onto my fist for food as always. It seemed to me that the uncoordinated limbs were much improved, and for a moment I thought he may one day recover completely. Spinal injuries in animals can sometimes take years to resolve. I tickled his toes and noted he pulled away only on one side.

Quasimodo

When showing a couple around the birds, I noticed Quasimodo behaving in a frantic manner. He jumped to the floor and ran around in an excited manner. Later that evening, he looked composed as ever, one foot up as night fell.

The next day I had to bring a vet from KWS to see Rosy, but as I entered the ranch, my cell phone rang. It was Jonathan who said I must come quickly as Quasimodo was very sick. I arrived 5 minutes later to find him dead.

He had defecated pure blood, and his vent was damp and soiled. I held him in shock for this was totally unexpected. There had been no prior indication of ailing health. No time to check him over and start therapy. He was a very special hawk. Unlike his kind (which are usually aloof and hard headed), he was exceptionally kind natured. He would fly any distance to follow me around on long walks. Always clumsy, sometimes crashing into objects and my hand, he clearly became a pet of sorts. I knew he would be in captivity all his life, but I hoped it would be long and fruitful. He’d have made a dashing suitor for a young lady Sparrowhawk.

It appears that the back fracture was in the ilium, the fused area of the lower back where the kidneys are protected in a sheath of bone. This would explain his renal problem and the partial paralysis of his legs. It seems likely that the function of the kidneys was impaired and that a haemorrhage had led to his death.

I have dealt with many deaths. You have to in this business. Usually it is not shared. But with this blog, I, perhaps unwisely, chose to share his story with others. I think I might have written cautiously about his prospects from the start, so as not to upset anyone in case he died.

Sketch of Quasimodo (By S Thomsett)

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Being slow-breeders and top-end predators, birds of prey are highly vulnerable to any persecution or change in their habitat and environment. These traits also make them good indicators of overall ecosystem health. Not enough is known about birds of prey at the expert level, or by the world at large. This has led us to devise a plan that would take us on an Africa-wide adventure which we are hoping you will join us on. It will involve travelling, mostly by car, through Africa, researching birds of prey and photographing them for what will ultimately lead to some books that will serve to raise awareness and increase knowledge of these sensitive animals.

We are in the process of making preparations for the trip, which include buying the necessary equipment, kitting out the car, and sorting out all the administration that such a big project entails. Sadly, it also means that Simon must find temporary homes for his birds. Once on the road, probably around mid-to-late-September, we hope to give you daily updates on the places we go, the people we meet and, most importantly, our wildlife experiences.

Our trip will include:
1. Doing a road count of the raptors as we travel through the continent.
2. Regularly updating a blog, Facebook group and MySpace page in order to keep you in-the-know.
3. Helping local raptor specialists with research as we move along.
4. Observing and photographing the birds with the overall goal of producing a comprehensive publication on all the raptor species of Africa.

We are looking for funding in the form of grants or any such scheme to support the expedition. Do not hesitate at any time to contact us with ideas and suggestions at raptorexpedition@gmail.com.

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Tags: Africa, bird of prey, Book, Eagle, expedition, Falcon, Hawk, raptor, Vulture

For those following the Crowned Eagle ‘saga’, it is important to separate two parallel issues. One is Rosy’s eye operation and the other is the closing down of my facility at Athi. The urgency to get Rosy’s eyes operated on does not depend upon the date I move out of Athi, nor the African expedition that Laila and I will do shortly thereafter. We all agree that Rosy comes first. But he demands daily maintenance now, and will do so for at least a week or two after the operation. So the sooner this is done the better for all parties.

The reason for leaving has already been outlined, but poor security and the increased cost of maintaining what amounts to a zoo summarises the difficulty in trying to do anything other than “holding the fort”. The decision to cease the raptor rehabilitation side of my life has upset a lot of close friends and relatives, but they all knew it had to stop, one day. They hope it will continue, as do I, once the foundation for it is firm and self sustaining. The plan is to release all those birds that can be released, find homes for the rest. In a country famous for its human/wildlife relationships such as depicted in “Born Free”, it is surprising to know that very few people are allowed to hold wildlife and options are very few and far between. I was not prepared to give the birds over to institutions or private collections that have (at their own self admission) not the facilities to keep the birds. To find Rosy and Girl a new home and new foster parents was going to be tough.

Rosy with an egg

I drove to Naivasha on the 13th August to meet Sarah and Mike Higgins who own a beautiful piece of property that looks onto a small wildlife conservancy of Crescent Island. Set among Yellow fever trees, the view out front is of uninterrupted passage of impala, giraffe and wildebeest. Yet just behind them is a working farm fringed by a tall hedge that demarcates their property from their neighbours. In here is the “veg patch”. Closer to the main house, Sarah built two very smart sheds for one of my old one winged Fish Eagles, and another for a pair of flightless Augur Buzzards. Somewhere between the two is a number of shrubbery filled sheds with an extremely fecund pair of Barn Owls and a rather sinister Spotted Eagle Owl who tucks herself up and stares over her shoulder with one half closed eye. Sarah is surrounded by her owls, and even has some Marsh Owls that come into the house at night and play with the curtains. Like all our birds, they are waifs and strays, one winged, one eyed wrecks that have no hope other than captivity. I was very late in realizing that we shared a common interest although I have known Sarah for a long time. But when I asked for help, there was no question of backing out.

With the smaller raptors, it wasn’t too much to ask. They did not need anything more than just a shed. But with the Crowned Eagles, it is a very different matter as if alarmed, this eagle could put you in hospital or worse. Sarah knows this and is very anxious that the birds will have a good home and continue to breed.

Duchess, one of Rosy’s and Girl’s offspring, that was successfully released last year (Photo by Laila Bahaa-el-din)

Nothing can beat the way these eagles were housed before. On Game Ranching Athi River, they could sit and stare out over tens of thousands of acres of uninterrupted plains and watch the giraffe and wildebeest wander by in their hundreds. A few weeks ago, I saw Girl staring hard at the only decent sized acacia tree about 200m distant. I thought she was daft, but double checked to see, just see with strong binoculars, the tops of ears of two, maybe more cheetah. There is no question that the peace and tranquility of such a scene, plus the sometimes naturally occurring alarming events make the pair feel they have a territory and a place to defend. When a Martial or a Tawny Eagle flies low over the house they call out and get very protective. It is all part of the daily routine that gets them into breeding condition.

In Naivasha, the situation will be different and they will have to contend with the constant hum of distant tractors, people’s voices, arrival of cars which less sensitive raptors would learn to ignore quickly. But Crowned Eagles are truly leopards in their shyness and suspicion of all things. With good planning, however, it is possible that they can get almost exactly the same design shed, and with luck, when Rosy is better…….they will continue to breed.

When it comes to weighing up options, the most demanding criteria is whether or not the people looking after the eagles care. And Sarah cares, a lot.

So it is settled. In the next few weeks, I will be shuttling materials from Athi to Naivasha to build a duplicate shed. Sarah will become their guardian until such a time as Laila and I return, and if and when I can find a new location.

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Tags: Crowned Eagle, Relocation, Rosy