Under My Thumb

Persons of a certain age will associate today's blog title with a Rolling Stones' song that refers to taming one's woman. Today I learned that the term "under my thumb" originates in falconry. One of the exciting things about traveling and writing this blog is that I never know what is going to happen and what will be the highlight of the day. There was no question that today it was the opportunity to learn about falconry, the sport of noblemen. The conference went on for most of the day, but the "social program" began at 4PM. One had a choice between two special local activities: riding antique motorcycles or playing with birds. Even though it was pouring rain I chose falconry. The birds were beautiful. In the top photo I am holding a female eagle. She seemed quite heavy although she weighed only 3kg. Her powerful talons would allow her to carry a deer (!) if she needed to! The birds are weighed every day. They are not allowed to get too light, as they might escape. The term "under my thumb" comes from the way one holds the bird with the glove. Later on (second photo down) we had an activity in which the birds flew between 2 teams. I am holding an owl. My colleagues Joris (on the left) and Sicco (on the right) are holding young falcons, who are wearing helmets that prevent them from seeing, as they are very excitable. Our instructor is holding an Icelandic falcon, who was released, and then returned to attack his prey, a freshly killed dove. We were also "treated" to a demonstration of an owl swallowing a whole live mouse. In some ways, the experience seemed very Darwinian. It was Alfred, Lord Tennyson who wrote of "nature red tooth and claw," and Richard Dawkins popularized this phrase in his 1976 book "The Selfish Gene." That phrase kept popping up in my head. Truly it was a memorable day.