Talon for Hunting

Phil Jones walks across an open field, kicking shrubs and overturning rocks until a jack rabbit springs from behind a bush and darts across the High Desert floor.

At that instant, the red-tailed hawk perched on Jones’ gloved arm takes flight. The bird of prey swoops, grips the rabbit in its talons and devours it.

“My adrenaline rushes when I go out hunting with the bird,” Jones says.

Jones is a modern-day falconer, hunting game with hawks and falcons. He is among about 2,500 people in California who practice the ancient sport.

Falconry began about 3,000 years ago in China and Persia. It flourished in Europe through the Middle Ages and until the 1700s, when firearms became available.

Jones, 39, developed an interest in birds of prey as a boy, watching falconers in his Marina del Rey neighborhood.

As an apprentice falconer, he learned to trap birds and train them to hunt. “Birds are like humans; you may get one that you can train easily, or one that might take time to train,” Jones said.

Eventually, Jones, who works as a contractor and developer, earned a master falconer’s license from the state Department of Fish and Game. The permit is granted after falconers pass an examination that tests their knowledge of the sport, as well as of birds’ anatomy and physiology.

“You have to be dedicated to do this. It’s very demanding,” he said.

Jones demonstrates his falconry skills at national and state competitions. During contests, falconers go out into fields and let their birds fly at game. The bird with the most game at the end of the tournament wins.

To give children a close-up view of birds of prey, Jones, who lives in the Antelope Valley, frequently visits schools with Layla, a Harris’ hawk; Venus, a red-tailed hawk; and Hootie, a great horned owl who is blind in one eye.

Jones’ daughter, Allyson, 4, often goes along on school visits. She even takes part in the demonstration by allowing a bird to fly to her outstretched, gloved arm.

“I want to show the kids that these birds are not just killers,” Jones said.