Members Newsletter May 2003

A Page From The Top Perch

On behalf of the first committee for the Friends of The Raptor Foundation, welcome to the first of what I hope to be many 'A Page From The Top Perch'.

The Friends of The Raptor Foundation has been set up to co-ordinate the membership into a more cohesive fundraising unit. Aimed at getting the member's to become more involved in any way beneficial to the Foundation. It can be helping around the centre on a regular basis, to giving a hand at setting up a stand at a venue near your home and hopefully staying to help, to finding that your local companies may like to help sponsor the Foundation. In fact anything to ease the work load of the small dedicated staff at the Centre.

With regard to helping at events you are probably aware that we have a number of fundraising teams as well as the main centre. This is a list of who covers what areas:

Mick & Isabel - Bedford and surrounding area
Helen & Jimmy - Lincoln and surrounding area
Gordon - Peterborough and surrounding area
Mo & I - South Cambs

This list is not exact as there are exceptions to every rule, but as a rough guide if you live in any of these areas, and you would like to become more involved with fund raising please do not hesitate to get in touch with me and I will pass on your details to the fundraising team in your area. If you do not live in one of these areas but would still like to help on outside shows please get in contact with the main centre on 01487 741140 as they keep a list of all events that are booked, which do usually include events that are outside of the areas listed above (including those covered by the fundraising teams). Don't forget you do not have to handle the birds (and you would only be handling them after training), in most cases we have a table of saleable goods which will need to be manned at the shows.

I hope that you have marked the date in your diary for the Membership BBQ on Saturday 7 June 03 (further info available from the Centre) as in addition to the BBQ we will be holding the first members committee meeting. Please come along and meet the committee, the birds and look at all the changes which have been made over the last winter period.

If you have any questions about the work of the Friends of The Raptor Foundation then please contact me through the Raptor Foundation.

Peter Harding
Chairman of The Friends of The Raptor Foundation

From the Editor

Once again it is newsletter time. It is now the end of March 03 as I am writing this (yes I know I am getting ahead of myself) and by the time you get to read this in May the start of the Summer will be upon us (I hope!). This also means that our teams and the Centre will start to get busier and busier and soon we won't know what spare time means.

Over the coming newsletters I am hoping that I will be able to bring you more information about the fund raising side of the Charity. Not only the main teams who go out with teams of birds but smaller events which are being held to raise money for the charity as well. Things like people taking part in the local 'fun runs' and other events. If you are planning to hold an event (even if it is just a coffee morning) why not let me know and I will add it into the next newsletter. You will also be glad to know that I will be endeavoring to get the newsletters on a more regular basis (i.e. every 3 months - meaning the next newsletter should be sent out to you in August followed by November etc.).

I am hoping that you will also be seeing more articles from other members and not just me and our main team members (although we will still keep putting pen to paper - or is it fingers to the keyboard?), in this newsletter you will find another article from Paul, one of the volunteers who has agreed to write regular articles. There is also an article from Dave, one of The Raptor Foundations newer members about how he got involved in working as a volunteer with the Charity.

I must also say a big thank you to Helen Powell, who suggested that we have a Children's Corner for the younger generation who read this newsletter. After contacting Helen she has agreed to organize a Children's Corner for this newsletter. So once again, many thanks to both Paul, Dave and Helen.

If anyone has any other ideas for the newsletter I would be grateful to hear from you (I promise that you will not have to write the article yourself - but I would not mind if you did!)

Helen Tarbox
Newsletter Editor

Life At The Raptor Foundation

Do a job once & you'll find you have to do it again & again. Last year I was asked to take photographs of our first twilight flying displays. No problem I said, thinking that was all. On my next visit, I was asked if I'd written my article for the newsletter yet. Article, what article ? Despite Liz's insistence (trust me, I did ask you), I still maintain I wasn't asked. Now the next newsletter is imminent, having written one article, I 'm asked to do another & another & ...

So what is life like as a volunteer ? Well, if The Raptor Foundation were founded almost exactly 200 years earlier, the world would probably be a much different place now. William Wilberforce would have looked at the Foundation volunteers & come to the conclusion that maybe the slaves didn't have it too bad after all. 100 years later, the Victorians would have realised that maybe they could work their children much harder than they were doing.

We are sent out to work in the extremes of weather. From the coldest depths of winter, when the Snowy Owls look at you imploringly, as you clean the aviary, almost begging for you to give them your coat so they can stay warm. To the blistering heat of summer, when the only reason Vinny the African Vulture doesn't pluck out his feathers to cool down is that he doesn't want to end up as sunburnt as the volunteers.

Shoulders hunched, eyes to the ground, we shuffle around doing our allocated jobs, careful not to raise our heads & meet the eyes of our master, lest she hand out some arbitrary punishment that would be considered "cruel & unusual" & cause an outcry from Amnesty International, if it were publicly known. Gravel washing in the depths of winter comes to mind, when most of the water pipes are frozen & when you do find one that isn't, the water you get out starts to ice over in the bucket as you're washing the gravel. In the first few minutes as you hands go numb, you begin to wonder what heinous crime you committed, & pray for forgiveness for all the sins in the world, hoping you hit on the right one.

OK, I'm exaggerating (some of the other volunteers may disagree though).

I've been a volunteer at The Raptor Foundation for three years now, prior to that, I spent close to two years at another centre. There, the volunteers were used to do all the dirty & unappealing jobs that the paid staff didn't want to do, the opportunities to handle the birds were limited & certainly no flying the birds on the displays.

Coming to work as a volunteer at The Raptor Foundation was totally different. We still get to do all the dirty & unappealing jobs that the paid staff don't want to do, but we are expected to be fully involved with all aspects of the Foundation, including flying the birds. On my first day, I was expecting the job to be much the same as I had done before. It came as a complete surprise to be told I was flying one of the Common Buzzards on the first display (You can fly Jill, oh, by the way, she's vicious).

A typical day for a volunteer starts 1-2 hours before The Raptor Foundation opens to the public. Our first jobs are cleaning out all of the aviaries & weatherings & putting out the birds on our flying team that have been indoors overnight and generally tidying the site up before the public start arriving. Around 10 O'clock we take a break for coffee, tea, breakfast finishing around opening time.

After our break, we have various jobs, including preparation of food for the flying displays. This involves gutting 30-40 chicks & pulling a big tub full of chick legs. This job invariably leaves me covered in egg yolk.Throughout the day we get various jobs to do, tidying, weeding, help with the building work, general maintenance. Before each flying display we gather to find who is flying which birds on that day, our aim then is to get all of the birds for that display ready so that there is no delay between each part of the display. When we're not busy with our various jobs & getting the birds ready, we are encouraged to get out & talk to our visitors.

During the final flying display, we are also preparing to feed all of the birds, this will often start during the last display & continue as the Foundation closes. As we're feeding up, the birds on the flying team are put indoors or closed up in their weatherings for the night, food tubs & pouches are taken for cleaning, other tidying up jobs are completed before we finish sometime after our last visitor has left.

So, life as a volunteer perhaps isn't as harsh as I initially made out, though sometimes it seems it. And I'm still convinced, on days that I haven't been working, that I have heard the sounds of Raptor Foundation volunteers singing spirituals to raise their spirits ("Oh lordy, pluck a pail of chick legs, Oh lordy, pluck a pail a day").

By Paul Frost (Volunteer)

Being a Volunteer at the Raptor Foundation

One Saturday morning last November I was walking through St Neots market square when I saw a display setup with several owls sitting on logs. Having been fascinated by owls for many years I went for a closer look. While standing there in amazement at being so close to birds that are rarely seen the chap picked up the largest owl on a leather glove. The owl was a European eagle owl the largest of the owl family. I started asking questions because I wanted to know all about it. Where does it come from? How much does it weigh? He then said if I was really interested and wanted to know more I should visit the Raptor Foundation who they were representing and fund raising for. I then picked up a leaflet and left.

The following weekend I visited the Raptor Foundation and was made to feel very welcome by Liz and the team of volunteers. From that day I was hooked and knew I would return again. Over the course of the next few weeks I became a member and also a volunteer. I now try to visit as often as I can mainly at weekends as I get so much pleasure and enjoyment out of flying the birds.

A typical day starts with the one job all volunteers hate doing and that's cleaning out the aviaries. This is a never-ending job as there are so many aviaries and birds. After a short tea break its back to cleaning the aviaries. The next task of the day is to weigh some of the birds that are used in the displays. All the birds have an optimum weight for flying, above this weight and they may not fly.

By this time its approaching midday and its time for the first display of the day. Each display consists of a selection of birds from barn owls to hawks and falcons through to eagle owls. Each display lasts approximately one hour. There are two more displays throughout the afternoon at 2pm and 4pm. A different selection of birds are flown at each display to ensure all the birds get the chance to fly.

At the end of the day the birds that are put into weatherings or on perches for the day are taken inside for the night. Then the birds that need feeding are given between one and six one day old chicks. At the same time all the aviaries are locked to stop predators like foxes getting to the birds. This concludes a typical day at the Raptor Foundation.

By Dave Blows (Volunteer)

Visit to The Raptor Foundation

Well, its official, Helen is so desperate to get an article for the newsletter that she threatened me! So here goes.

On Saturday 22 February 03 we paid a 'flying' visit to the centre to say Hi to everyone. Unfortunately my work schedule is a bit fluid at the moment and I can't make any plans in advance. We chose the one weekend when Liz was out on a Hawking Experience day and Patr & Trevor were out on a show.

Our first surprise on arriving was just how much the place seems to have changed since our last visit. There is a new shop, tea room and more aviaries. After a quick cuppa it was time for flying display number one. Steven and the rest of the team put on a display despite only 4 members of public being in attendance.

Our second surprise was the new arrivals in the flying team: The Canadian Great Horned team of Elmo and Sully (who we last saw as a young chick during last summer) tried to perform. However, Sully decided there were not enough visitors and so sat on the tower, flew to Tawny City and watched Elmo perform. This was followed by Simon and Reds and then it was time for another new team member. Rodders the Harris Hawk who showed how friendly he is by sitting next to a small child (no doubt eying up dinner).

So, time for another culpa, this time we also had some food, thanks to Sue and Sarah. We had a chat with Helen (not my Wife Helen, another volunteer called Helen) who spends her time by helping in the shop and on the entrance door. Suddenly Sophie asked if I would like to fly Gambia the European Eagle Owl during the next flying display - and my answer - well, it involved three letters and starts with a Y, need I say more…

It was then time to get ready for the display. It's a long time since either Helen (my wife) or I have taken part in a flying display, we try to leave it to those who do the hard work at the centre as it is their reward for doing the dirty jobs (see Life At The Raptor Foundation). To say I was a little nervous was an understatement, I have known Gambia since she was 1 week old but last time I attempted to fly her she refused to perform on the basis that I do not wear a skirt! With Sophie's help we managed a couple of trips around the flying area and then a magnificent flight home. As I got back to the flying area, Steven was attempting to train a new falconer. A young member of the audience had decided that he could swing a lure and proceeded to demonstrate his skill to all (see Caption Competition). Steven then moved to centre stage to fly one of the falcons and as he turned round the young lad (about 5 years old) was stood right behind him to get the best view. I am still not sure who was most surprised - Steven, the young lad or the falcon.

Next came Jess and one of the Snowy Owls. Unfortunately this was not Jess's day as she then spent the next 30 minutes searching the farmers field for a 'lesser spotted, grass nesting runaway owl' (Snowy Owl to you and I). Once the Snowy Owl was recovered it was time for another cup of tea.

Helen and I then had the chance to look around the aviaries and say hello to some of the longer term residents, Fred, Lucky, Boo, Henry, Leo, the Hawks, Buzzards, Vinny, Barnie Town, Tawny City, Squeak and not forgetting Inca who loves to let me known that she is boss and gives me (and most of the other male volunteers) a full mantle. Before you get time to think, it is time for flying display number 3.

This time is was another chance for Rodders to excel and a new falcon for us - a Prairie Falcon, and then a bit of fun… The Barn Owls. We had about 4 barn owls all flying around and landing everywhere. The crowd joined in and it was absolute organized chaos for a good 10-20 minutes. Eventually everyone was caught up and time for bed - but not for the volunteers - the owls, hawks and falcons all needed feeding, a large task with over 300 birds to feed. The small birds get put inside for the night, weatherings closed up in case of foxes and the last bit of tidying done.

On our way out we just managed to say Hi to Patr and Trevor as they returned from an outside show and it was time to head to the In-Laws for another cup of tea and some food.

We had a lovely day out watching a well oiled team put on a good performance for the public. Helen (the other volunteer) in the entrance and shop; Sue and Sarah in the Tea Room; Stephen, Simon, Dave, Jess, Sophie and the other volunteers doing the flying; Patr and Trevor doing an outside show; Liz out on a hunting day.

Add to this list: Pete and Mo; Mick and Isabel and Helen & I and you can see it takes a lot of work to keep the place going. Remember, Liz, Patr and Sue along with John the falconer keep the centre going during the weekdays - most of the volunteers are either school/college students or in full time work so can only help at the weekends. If I have missed any of the volunteers out by name I am sorry - your help is appreciated.

Jimmy Tarbox