Raptor Rambles by Raptor Aid CIO

Apologies for the delay in bringing you another podcast and also apologies that once again Apple & Google Podcast's appear to be playing up. We are trying to fix this. You can find us on PodBean & Spotify though! This episode I spoke to eagle falconer and anthropologist Dr. Lauren McGough from the USA. I've followed Laurens work with eagles and travels for a while now and since I have a former life working with captive birds of prey its always interesting to see other individuals and cultures perspectives on this ancient field sport. Lauren is a fantastic ambassador for the world of falconry and she comes from a country that leads the world in using falconry techniques for the conservation and preservation of the worlds birds of prey. Lauren puts these skills into practice by training and rehabilitating Golden eagles. She has also travelled to the remote regions of Mongolia to learn about the cultural significance of Golden eagles and the role they play in the nomadic lifestyles of the people in this region. Lauren didn't just go for a holiday though, she fully embraced and immersed herself in the culture by spending over 12 months with a family learning eagle falconry and the nomadic lifestyle first hand. Lauren is very active on social media and anyone with an interest in falconry, birds of prey and anthropology should check her out on Instagram - @eaglefalconer  www.laurenmcgough.com

A very special episode for our UK fundraiser for the Philippine eagle Foundation! In this episode I am really lucky to bring together Neil Rettig and James Aldred, two amazing wildlife camera men who have both been lucky enough to film a wild Philippine eagle nest.  Neil Rettig is an award winning cinematographer based in the USA and has been championing the Philippine eagle and its conservation since the very early days of science even knowing about it. Along with his Partner Laura Johnson and friends in the early days he has been a shining light for this species and its conservation. James Aldred is an award winning wildlife cameraman based in the UK who specialises in canopy access. He has worked on some of the biggest natural history productions seen on British television, has pulled the great Sir David Attenborough into a tree to film and even been attacked by a female Harpy eagle whilst rigging cameras on a nest. He is also the author of the brilliant book "The man who climbs trees". Thank you to both of them for taking the time to chat to me and support this fundraiser. If you can donate feel free to visit the fundraising page below. https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-philippine-eagle-conservation-fundraiser

Episode 9 of Raptor Rambles and we are talking about one of my favourite birds the Bearded vulture with Dr Sonja Krueger. Sonja is based out in the incredible region of the Drakensberg mountains in South Africa and having been lucky enough to visit this part of the world I can personally testify what a stunning place it is. The Bearded vulture is happiest in this mountain environment and I discuss with Sonja the pressures this species faces in Africa, the issues she and her team have to face accessing and monitoring as many breeding territories as possible and also how they are trying to support the population with innovative captive breeding.  Anyone who has been to Africa I'm sure will know what it is like to have that urge to visit again and again! Talking to Sonja certainly brought so many memories of seeing my first Bearded vulture in the wild! https://bred4thewild.com Thanks for listening!

Welcome to the episode 8 of Raptor Rambles! I am joined by Dr. David Anderson an ornithologist and biologist for the Peregrine Fund but also a specialist is canopy access which he uses to monitor various species including the Harpy eagle. David also uses his skill set to train budding biologist's to reach for the canopy and is the founder of not for profit organisation Canopy Watch International (https://www.canopywatch.com).  David realised fairly quickly the power accessing the canopy can have on people from all walks of life and runs recreational climbing events alongside training events for biologists. As a tree climber myself it was great to hear about the incredible adventures and work that David has accomplished. Raptor Aid is also proud to have made donation to set up a scholarship to support two raptor biologists take part in Canopy Watches International Training camp in Colombia this year! Go and find your favourite tree and sit in it or under it and enjoy this interview with Dr. David Anderson!

In episode 7 I welcome Karla Bloem, director of the International Owl Centre in the United States. Karla and her team do an amazing job focusing on the dissemination of education on owls and their conservation around the world. On a personal level Karla has carried out extensive work on understanding the vocalisations of Great Horned Owls.  The International Owl Centre is also home to the Owl Hall of Fame awards where not only individuals who excel in   owl conservation are recognised but also an award that recognises ambassador owls themselves!  Karla has also founded the International Festival of Owls which takes place annually held in a different country each year. More information can be found using the links below but also the IOC also has been running a brilliant virtual expert speakers series recently which is available on their YouTube page.  Thanks for listening!  www.internationalowlcenter.org  www.festivalofowls.com  

In this episode we are joined by none other than avian super vet Neil Homer-Forbes BVetMed Dip ECZM(avian) FRCVS and it is a real treat to hear what its like to be on the cutting edge of avian veterinary medicine. I have been fortunate to work closely with Neil in the past and see first hand the amazing work he carries out 'fixing' birds. A man of incredible empathy and knowledge it was brilliant to hear in his own how he got into veterinary medicine and what he is proud of achieving. Thanks for tuning in and as always if you enjoy it please give us a follow, like and share and we'll keep the great interviews coming!

Welcome to the next episode of Raptor Rambles! In this episode I chat to Sophie-Lee Williams from the Eagle Reintroduction Wales project which is a feasibility study and community research study set up by Sophie to try and find out if there is a possibility to successfully reintroduce Golden and White Tailed eagles back into Wales. Sophie discusses her path through academia and what led her to focus her attention on bringing back two of the largest predators Britain has to Wales. Sophie has extensive experience working alongside Britain's foremost reintroduction expert Roy Dennis and its a real treat to hear how the project is progressing but also what its like for Sophie to be leading such an exciting project. To find out more about ERW please visit - https://www.eaglereintroductionwales.com/

What could be more festive than talking about the frozen North with snow, ice and the worlds largest species of owl? In episode 4 we chat to Jonathan Slaght a wildlife biologist working for the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) as their Russia & Northeast Asia co-ordinator and who is probably best known as one of the worlds foremost experts on the Blakiston’s Fish Owl. I have tried to follow Jon’s work on this rare and elusive owl from afar here in the UK often picking up small articles with updates on this incredible species and his work. I was so excited when after 10 years of studying this species in the remotest parts of Russia Jon has published his first book titled ‘Owls of the Eastern Ice’ about his exploits attempting to understand the Blakiston’s Fish Owl. The book has been a huge success including winning The Times UK nature book of the year - it is a must read for anyone with even the slightest interest in nature, I couldn’t put it down. In this interview I find out what its like trying to understand the ecology of a rare and poorly understood species in some of the harshest terrain with an eclectic mix of human characters. Hopefully you get a feel for being on the front line of real cutting edge conservation. You can find out more about Jonathan Slaght and buy the book at https://jonathanslaght.com/ Thank you for listening and have a great festive season & new year!

In epsiode 3 of Raptor Rambles I catch up with director of the Vulture Conservation Foundation Jose Tavares. The VCF have gone from strength to strength since Jose has taken the helm and we find out what it takes to lead a progressive forward thinking NGO. Jose shares with us how the VCF came to be returning the Bearded vulture to the skies of Europe and how captive breeding and understanding the genetics has helped return this species to many of its traditional haunts. VCF work to protect all European vulture species through practical conservation methods and collaboration across the world with fellow scientists and conservationists. It was great to hear from Jose how things are looking bright for European vultures. You can find out more about the amazing work of the Vulture Conservation Foundation below https://www.4vultures.org/

In Episode 2 I’m really pleased to be joined by Katie Harrington a research associate with Hawk Mountain in the USA. Katie is studying the fascinating species that is the Striated caracara which is found on the remote islands of the Falklands. Caracara’s are some of the quirkiest and intelligent birds of prey you will ever come across and it’s fascinating to hear what is being discovered about them! In this chat I find out all about this incredible species and how Katie found herself in some of the remotest islands in the world studying them! You can find Katie on Social media - Instagram - @phalcoboenus Facebook - Falkland Islands Johnny Rooks Twitter - @phalcoboenus Patreon - http://www.patreon.com/katiejharrington Thanks once again for tuning in!