Tudor Falconry At Lacock Abbey 1

This was the fourth year that the National Trust at Lacock has invited the Tudor Falconer, Jonathan Marshall, up from Devon to demonstrate his birds of prey, and the third year that I have gone along to see them in the grounds and cloisters of Lacock Abbey. The show is included in the normal admission price and so is free of charge to NT members.

This year the static display of the birds was set up in the cloisters as the heat would have been detrimental to them, especially to those that would be performing aerial displays in the afternoon. Four were on show, his ten-year old Harris Hawk, Crouch, a peregrine falcon (Morgan), a lanner falcon (Swift) and a rare and beautiful gyr falcon called Pearl.

There was time after the static display to do a tour of the grounds, so I set off towards the rockworks to seek out the Smokey-alike Gizmo, but he must have been curled up in the shade or indoors somewhere. I had a picnic lunch on a bench in the orchard, encompassed by dandelions, wildflowers and apple trees in blossom, and did some reading.

There had been a display in the morning before I arrived, and a second at three in the afternoon when Swift, Crouch and Morgan were put through their paces. In my blip the dependable Harris hawk Crouch, named after footballer Peter Crouch,  is seen in mid-flight. He had recently lost a tail feather and after the display had finished, he was wrapped in a truss and had a new feather attached by Jonathan Marshall with the aid of a needle and some superglue, after which he flew effortlessly onto a notice stand.

L.
29.5.2014 (0930 hr)

Blip #1275
Consecutive Blip #137
Day #1514

Alternative:
Girl Waving And Crouch Mantling

Tudor Falconry At Lacock Abbey, 17-18 May 2014 (Flickr album)

Lenses: Pentax 17-70mm, Pentax 55-300mm x1.4

Birds Of Prey series
Falconry series
Lacock series
Outdoor Places I Have Sat In series

Lozarhythm Of The Day:
Quintessence - Pearl and Bird (1969)


One year ago: Fluffy 1018hr