DOHA: As the falconry season has begun the demand for the popular bird of prey has been soaring, making their prices literally hit through the roof.
Depending on species and origin and whether a falcon is trained to hunt, its price can range from QR10,000 to an incredible QR500,000 ($137,000).
Falcons of different species and origin are being vended at Souq Waqif and the bird bazaar is attracting Qatari youth in large numbers.
Falconry is a popular sport in this part of the world and according to experts, its hunting season begins at the start of September and lasts until February.
Falcons are mostly accessed from Africa, Asia and the Arab peninsula and in Qatar the popular species are Al Shawaheen, Al Harrar and Al Wakarrah, among others.
Here, falcons are mostly used to hunt hubara (bustards) in their natural habitat, as also rabbits and other birds.
Not all falcons are trained to hunt. Those untrained are, naturally, sold cheaper.
And according to an expert, Hussain Al Rabea, it usually takes about 15 days to train a falcon to hunt.
The most active months of falconry in Qatar are October, November and December and in this period the sale and purchase of the birds of prey become feverish.
“Although the hunting seasons begins early in September the buying and selling of falcons pick up in October through December,” said Al Rabea.
Qatari youth are quite fond of falconry and spend a lot of time and money on this sport.
Saif Mohamed said he learnt falconry from his father and is quite fond of it. “I am basically a trainer and picked up the art from experience.”
He said that during training a falcon is basically taught how to catch a prey. The majestic-looking birds mostly come from Asia, Egypt, Lebanon and Syria, among other places, he said.
The Peninsula
