VIDEO. African great owl, American buzzards, tawny eagle… This falconer has around ten birds of prey in his garden and hunts with them

African eagle owl, American buzzards, tawny eagle… We might think we are in a small animal park, but we are in Eric Burgeot's garden, a few minutes from Martel. The latter has around ten birds of prey at home. A small herd. He also hunts with them and does educational activities in season. Return to this devouring passion.

It all started when he was a child. “I started with ornithology when I was 12 or 13 years old. I delved deeply into it. I studied in this branch. And then, I had a friend whose father was a captain in the air force I learned that they were looking for falconer assistants. I arrived in good spirits, but it was a real revelation”, smiles the Lotois.

And since 2001, the profession of falconer has stuck with him. After the army, and having discovered hunting and scaring, he turned to animation. For many years, he worked at Rocher des Aigles, in Rocamadour. Since 2017, he has changed jobs, but continues to offer entertainment in season. “I like to go to schools with eight birds to present them: what species they are, their equivalents in Europe, their calls… Me, my knowledge was passed on to me so it's my turn to learn the new generation,” says the falconer.

“The flights are very impressive”

Eric still hunts. At the moment he is doing it with an American hawk, which was born in his home. “It's important: you have to pick them up when they leave the nest. This is where they learn as much as possible. We present prey, sometimes very small at first, so that the bird gains confidence, and it ends up getting a taste for it the more outings we go on, the more he learns, the better he gets and the more he likes it,” describes Eric. He continues: “Their pleasure in hunting is to eat hot food. Here, I give them raw meat. But when they hunt, they can pull on the feathers and get a little angry at their prey.” He does a lot of rabbit hunting with the help of a ferret. The latter sneaks into the burrows to bring out the game, before the bird dives on it. “It's more difficult than you think. It takes two or three tries for the bird to understand that the target is not the ferret, but then a wonderful bond develops between them. The flights are very impressive” , says Eric, who has all the necessary authorizations.

Eric Burgeot has around ten birds of prey at home. Tawny eagle, African great owl, owls, American buzzards… This falconer practices hunting with his feathered animals, and carries out educational activities. His portrait soon in our columns ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/oE0SlUHnyK

— La Dépêche du Lot (@LaDepeche46) https://twitter.com/LaDepeche46/status/1881019143614583254?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

In his garden, there are around ten aviaries. Each bird has its own name, as well as a little name. He welcomed his first bird of prey in 2010. “He's the father of the American buzzard. I had a lot of time to devote to him, he remains my best bird. Now he lives his peaceful life,” slips Eric. Especially since this bird of prey was affected by avian flu. Two years ago, the disease ravaged Eric's breeding farm. The buzzards were sick, but recovered. On the other hand, the Lotois lost two animals (a eagle owl and a falcon). A complicated period, which pushed him to adopt newcomers. “None comes from the wild. They all come from captivity. One of the buzzards comes from a breeding in Limoges. The eagle owl from the Chauvigny park, the predatory eagle from the Amnéville zoo… It's a small environment , everyone knows each other”, lists Eric. The latter would like to adopt a barn owl, which is in high demand during educational workshops.

Around 6 p.m., it’s feeding time. On the menu: raw chicken legs, chicks and rats. “Birds are carnivorous, you shouldn’t be afraid of handling meat!”, laughs Eric. “Here Momo, your rat!” Each bird is fed, each in turn. The falconer monitors the state of health of his protégés, especially with the cold falling on the Lot. No flights for them today. During the summer, each bird will fly once a day. Just to stretch your wings.