The annual Eagle Festival of the Kazakh people has just got underway in the Altai Mountains. The Kazakh tradition of falconry has a history stretching back more than 2,000 years.
An opportunity to show their skills and the eagles’ abilities, the annual Eagle Festival gathers the best eagle trainers from the region, old and young, to participate.
The festival begins with the eagle trainers displaying their traditional Kazakh dress along with their eagles’ adornments. After that comes the competition.
The participants get on horseback with their female eagles- they are a-third heavier than their male counterparts and far more aggressive. Then, they set the eagles free, sending them off in pursuit of their prey including wild rabbits, cats, foxes and even wolves.
"The eagles will be rated according to their speed as well as their ability to recognize their owners and to hunt." The referee said.
Participants will also exchange techniques of capturing and training eagles at the festival.
Eagle hunting has been passed down as a Kazakh tradition for more than two thousand years. Although most Kazakh people don’t make a living with eagle hunting today, the tradition is still enjoying a resurgence of interest among Kazakhs.
