Hawk Conservancy Experience

Welcome to our Hawk Conservancy Experience, we hope you will enjoy your time here. Spending time with any of natures wild animals is always an educational privilege and pleasurable experience and non less so than the day we spent in the company of Hawks and Birds of Prey at the Hawk Conservancy in Andover UK.

Both my wife and I are great fans of nature's wildlife and especially the great carnivores and raptors of the World. So when we decided to pay a visit to the Hawk Conservancy we were excited but slightly unsure about what to expect.

We shouldn't have been concerned as the venues features, facilities and entertainment all made for a really enjoyable and memorable day.

We would like to share this day with you using some of the pictures I managed to capture on my camera as well as personal accounts of our day from both my wife and myself. We hope you enjoy these enough to leave us your own feedback and thoughts on this site using the guestbook found at the bottom of this page.

Located in a beautiful part of the British Countryside and with over a 150 birds of prey on view, housed, and beautifully displayed the Conservancy's size and scale is quite impressive and yet it still maintains a traditional secluded woodland look and feel.

Their friendly and helpful staff greeted us upon arrival and provided us with all the details and information on the day's events and activities so that we would not miss anything.

The facilities were ample which means children of all ages and disabled visitors to the Hawk Conservancy Trust are catered for. It seemed that no matter how far we ventured into the aviary areas which are set in beautiful woodlands there was always a clean toilet facility close by.

The flying displays were outstanding and were held at several times throughout the day, each time with a different species of bird of prey and some with multiple species so as to demonstrate hawk group flying as well as their hunting and speed abilities.

The care and respect that was shown and demonstrated by all the bird handlers and carers was admirable and their extensive knowledge and abilities showed that they take what they do and are trying to achieve at the Hawk Conservancy very seriously. Their love and admiration of these beautiful but deadly birds was clear to see.

With several hides facing onto a 7 acre wild meadow the opportunity for spotting wild birds of prey was also an enjoyable one. The falconers place food at a specific spot in the meadow twice a day this encourages wild species such as herons, red kites, kestrels and other birds of prey into the meadow so they can be seen close-up.

The two main arenas also located in front of the meadow offer a great vantage point for enjoying the interactive bird displays which happen quite often throughout the day.

This beautiful Golden Eagle was on one of the external perches that are located in special areas throughout the Conservancy. As you can see it is a very impressive raptor that comes with a wingspan exceeding 6 feet.

Judging by the look on his face and the stare of his eyes I think his mind was firmly fixed on dinner.

Being that close to a creature that is at the top of its species food-chain such as the Golden Eagle is to the Bird World was certainly an uplifting experience.

This picture was also taken on one of the external perches allow you get up close and personal with some of these magnificent creatures.

This picture shows the Golden Eagle has a great profile with the legendary hooked beak in clear view.

While the Bald Eagle enjoys a preferred diet of fish its food sources extend to pretty much anything it can kill and carry or even scavenges when the need arises.

This picture shows a Falconer with a Bald Eagle landing on his arm, notice those bright yellow talons and the underside of its deadly beak.

The USA took this amazing creature to represent the country back in 1782 and since then its symbolic meaning and design has become more and more prominent.

The Bald Eagle itself is certainly an unmistakable image and to be so close to this image in real life was not only a real treat, but a time of admiration and respect. Equipped with an arsenal of killing and ripping tools makes this predator a formidable foe for any unsuspecting target.

Strangely enough while the Bald Eagle was loose and flying the skies went very quite, not another bird could be seen or a chirp to be heard such is the intimidation and power that this great creature projects.

She may largely be a terrestrial bird of prey but due to her formidable height and size the Secretary Bird makes hunting look easy and can easily dispatch a large snake using its large talons and agility.

As is demonstrated in this picture, you really wouldn't want to be a snake or any other ground dwelling creature coming into contact with this bird, she may be a land hunting Bird of Prey, but she is equally as well equipped as some of her flying raptor relatives.

(The snake you see in this photograph was only a large rubber one, but the intention and conclusion was easy to see)

One of the things that stood out with the Secretary Bird was her amazing explosive nought to attack speed supported by fast running. Coming towards us flat out was quite intimidating as well as exciting, but not so much so if you were a target of her desire.

We found this gorgeous Secretary Bird more and more interesting the closer we looked at her, standing at over 4 foot tall and with a real similarity to certain secretary characteristics she is certainly a wonder of nature.

Some of the talons we saw were exceptionally impressive none less so were these talons of a Bald Eagle on a Falconers glove that I managed to get a close-up of.

The setting was so tranquil especially when walking through the pre-cut pathway that is situated in and around the meadow. The views stretch out across the valley floor allowing you clear sight over the surrounding fields and hedgerows.

This photograph was taken from the front of the meadow which lies at the back of the Hawk Conservancy.

As you walk in amongst all the birds and around the woodland setting you occasionally come across one of these great looking architectural sculptures featuring different Birds of Prey.

Red Kites are among the more social birds in the raptor family, but this does not mean they are any less dangerous, in fact being social birds they are rarely seen on their own.

This team of five Red Kites put on an aerobatic display that would even have top gun pilots in a spin. The Falconer on the ground was throwing several pieces of food up at a time and the birds would catch it, not only that but they rarely each went for the same piece thus ensuring that none of the food ever hit the ground as they are more than capable of eating on the wing as well.

(Sorry the picture is not of better quality, but they got me in a real spin with this one.)

We hope you enjoyed this lens and would love to read your comments and feedback, please use this guestbook feature to leave us your own thoughts or short message. Thank you...