“LIVING CONSERVATORY OF ANCESTRAL FALCONRY” 2023

THE KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA

‘A RENEWED LEGACY’

Text William Richardot de Choisey & Fawaz Gamal

Translation by Sonia Smaldone

Photos Courtesy of Saudi Falconry Club & Exhibitors and Contribution of Haras de Cernay France

In recent decades, all falconers in Saudi Arabia have supported with force and determination, as some experienced falconers know well, birds of prey breeding and preservation as a part of a rich historical heritage of the country, including specimens that have been loyal companions of Bedouin travellers throughout the Arabian plains for centuries, hunting across vast territories. at also enabled Bedouins to feed themselves with the food their birds of prey ferociously hunted and brought them back. Falcons can be friendly creatures with their masters, but extremely ruthless when hunting bustards, onagers or gazelles. In military history, falcons have o en been used in war with their proud riders. ese fearsome birds were trained to attack the enemy’s eyes, such as those of the Crusader Knights, who were subjugated by the conquests. It would be later that bait and hood came into use. e set of all these techniques would provide a more obvious selection of the raptor’s ight abilities. Despite the modernization of all continents in the twenty- rst century, falconry has remained a sacred value of Saudi culture. As early as the Middle Ages, Bedouin rivalries in uenced the development of the nest falcons, sought a er for their beauty and the creation of speed tournaments that combined a blossoming sport that gradually spread across the Arabian Peninsula. As Modernity set in, the Bedouins can still remem- ber well the old days in this activity that was mainly a hobby. Young falcons got captured in the wild, and training them took a lot of patience and skill to improve their speed and hunting ability. But, once well-trained and over ve years old, the falcon becomes both the pride of his master and a blessing granted by God. For decades, the breeding of falcons was a matter of tradition, supporting the defenders of the eternal falconry that never lost its national glory, as per the objective set by each breeder, for hunting or beauty contests are only open to pure breeds under extremely draconian conditions. However, it will be necessary to adopt a regulation for a sport that is increasingly becoming lucrative given the population in constant demand for gatherings which represent real shows and entertainment for a whole people with only hybrid species for speed races over 400 meters oscillating between 18 and 21 seconds approximately, the rewards which are given at the end with a global endowment of nearly 8 million USD are encouraging. During these sports competitions, a panel of o cials, technical judges, veterinarians, and controllers all in number, monitor everything very closely with the help of technology, focussing on the speed of the birds. ere can be no compromise of any orders or forms of supposed interests, a rigour that should be applied elsewhere. People have invested in the cause of falconry, with associations outside the Saudi Kingdom strongly involved in awareness raising campaigns, a process that has culminated with the recognition of falconry as a Unesco World Intangible Heritage since November 2010, and the need to preserve this art of hunting in ight, one of the oldest in human civilization. Depending on the hunting territory, the falconer equipped with the ‘sabaa’ chooses his favourite bird wearing its ‘koubbile’. He will use either a Peregrine Falcon (Falco Peregrinus) or a Gyrfalcon (Falco Rusticolus) for the high ight. But also the Saker Falcon (Falco Cherrug) and Lanier Falcon (Falco Biarnicus). In some countries of the Middle East, falconry is being practised in the comfort of o -road cars, an activity with the inherent genes of the population. ese countries also possess the most beautiful Arabian horses in the world. But do not use them in this entertaining sport deeply rooted in their culture. Falconry has its codes, and international and national authorities ensure a thousand-year-old tradition is respected. All birds have a registration, and you must have an approval number with special facilities for the conduction of the activity. It is also relevant to respect the moulting period of birds, which occurs from midspring to August.

Behind the pushing international request under the aegis of the Saudi Falcon Club, an auction is periodically organized at ‘Malham’, north of Riyadh, o ering nearly 200 falcons for bids. In erce competition, thousands of connoisseurs gather from 35 countries to purchase the best falcons from the best Saudi breeders. e ‘Shaheen’ falcon is highly sought a er, and its price can even reach $200,000.

Once again, it should be remembered that the International Falcon Hunting Exhibition in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is also part of the ambitious Vision 2030 aimed at transforming the country, emphasizing maximum economic and cultural opportunities in a natural environment. For quite a long time, the King Abdulaziz alSaud Falconry Festival has always brought together the best specialists in this peculiar breeding, travelling from Bahrain, the Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Syria, and sometimes from ‘Europe. Some compete in the ‘al-Melwah’ *Falcon Call race, demonstrating their birds’ speed. Do not hesitate to come to Saudi Arabia, which now issues tourist Visas.