On the Edge of Wild, with Master Falconer Shawn Hayes

To see a falcon materialize from the sky in a colossal burst of power in pursuit of prey and to realize the falconer’s role, is to enter a new understanding of the natural world, one that takes you to the “edges of existence,” as falconer John Szabo has put it.

In this pilot episode of our series “The Edge of Wild,” Master Falconer Shawn Hayes will show us how hunting game with a bird of prey is as rewarding as it is challenging. Shawn’s expertise is flying “true” falcons like Gyrfalcons, Prairie Falcons, and Peregrines, which display stunning aerobatics during hunting.

Generally reclusive, Shawn Hayes has dedicated his life to the practice of training and caring for falcons, both in his native California and around the world in places like Japan, Pakistan, and Hungary. He was recently profiled in the Patagonia film “Game Hawker, A Wild Journey to Falconry,” and in the March issue of Audubon Magazine, in an article by Tim Gallagher, "The Aspiring Ascent of Master Falconer Shawn Hayes."

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