The use of falcons and other raptors in hunting is an important part of Kazakhstan’s heritage. Although not widely used today, it is still felt to be a significant part of their ancestral legacy. South of the city of Almaty you can visit Sunkar Falconry Centre to see some of these magnificent hunting birds up close. The centre also gives an impressive demonstration of how they train their birds for hunting.
The show begins by showing the audience some of their cute owls. Three different owls were brought on stage. It was remarkable the size difference between a new-born, a one-month and a two-month old great horned owl. It wasn’t just their sizes that developed quickly. The new born had down feathers and could barely walk. By two months, the juvenile almost looked like an adult who was able to jump quite high and was starting to be trained for hunting.
Sakar falcons were up next. These traditional hunting birds were what we were most interested to see. In the 80s and 90s there was a large international market for these falcons and their numbers in Kazakhstan declined dramatically. The Sunkar facility was originally opened to save these birds and therefore save the Kazakh tradition.
The bird trainer gave us a few demonstrations of how these magnificent birds are trained. Initially they are given slow moving, small objects to catch in the air. As the bird’s skills improve, the challenges becomes more and more difficult. They use fake pigeons on strings that are swung in increasingly faster and more varied patterns. Even as it was getting difficult to follow the pigeon with our eyes, the well-trained falcon had no problem catching the fake bird with its talons.
These birds are very smart. A wild falcon has learnt that there is a show at 5 pm each day. He flies over head at the correct time to be thrown a free meal by the trainer.
After a display of their hunting prowess, Maggie was called up on stage to feed one of the Sakar falcons. It was quite the thrill to be so close to this large, beautiful bird.
Sunkar Falconry Centre also has a few golden eagles. These birds are not only large, they are also very majestic. One was brought on to the stage in a dramatic fashion. A trainer rode in on a horse with a golden eagle perched on her arm.
Kazakhs use eagles to hunt for rabbits, foxes, marmots and even wolves. For this type of hunting, the eagle-hunter duo go into the mountains in search of prey. The hunter is on horseback so that once their eagle has captured the prey, the hunter can quickly reach the spot and retrieve the kill.
The bird sanctuary also has a few different types of vultures. They are very scraggly and vicious looking things. We have seen vultures in the wild many times, but when you’re this close to them, you realize how large they are.
We were able to see a bone-eating vulture in action. A large, fierce looking one swallowed a massive leg bone in only a couple of gulps. It was as impressive as it was disgusting.
Although we don’t like visiting zoos or facilities that hold animals in captivity, the Sunkar Centre is different. They are working to increase public awareness as well as the population of critically endangered birds in Kazakhstan. It was very interesting to see the heritage of falconry and its importance to Kazakh culture.
Entrance fee: 3,200 Tenge ($7.20 USD); Show hours; 5 pm, Tuesday to Sunday, from March to November.
Getting to Sunkar – If you don’t have your own car the only other option is taxi or Yandex. We took an Yandex from Medeu for 3,000 Tenge ($6.70 USD). You can read about Medeu and Shymbulak Ski Resort here. After the show we also used Yandex get to downtown Almaty from Sunkar for 2,000 Tenge ($4.50 USD).
For more information on Almaty and Travel Tips for Kazakhstan you can find our post here.
Coming Next – Tajikistan’s Fergana Valley
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