Writing for Fun
Shakira - Jenni Bowers
June 2014
'Another boring day,' thought Shakira as she stretched and reached for breakfast, 'Ah this is going to be a busy one,' as no food in her dish meant she would have to earn her breakfast.
Since she was very small mornings had always been the same, but his voice, soft and cajoling always kind, convinced her that she would be fed soon.
Training was good fun, first of course, there was the journey sitting on the cadge in back of the smart 4x4 with other birds, a Harris Hawk called George, a Barn Owl called Brenda and little owl called Peewee – none of them as beautiful as her, of course, and none faster.
Sometimes the Peregrine would accompany them – Percy was indeed much faster than her, wow when he stooped to catch the lure it was so amazing – 200 miles an hour sometimes.
So the day began – into the car, long journey today and it was so hot already, the master and his uncle sat chatting away, the M25 was, as usual, one huge traffic jam and they were going to be cutting it fine (what was that, she wondered).
Arriving at the huge building they were assailed by a strange noise – it was hundreds of children singing. Out of the car and into a large hall where the cadge was placed on the stage.
Soon the hall filled with noisy children and teachers shouting 'hush! This was the really boring part, Steve would stand in front of the throng and call for quiet, immediately the whole room would stop talking and listen to his lecture about birds of prey – Shakira and her friends would sit, the falcons with their hoods on waiting for the show to begin.
Who cared which bird had round wings and why, which bird had pointy wings and why – the same talk each time telling the children to respect wildlife (what wildlife! What is Wild?)
There would be a break during which the cadge was dispensed with and the birds put back into the car in the shade. Shakira was beginning to feel peckish by now and couldn't wait to take her turn of displaying her prowess to the awaiting audience.
First the owl – Brenda flew perfectly over the heads of seated children on the playground, she soared and swooped over their heads producing screams of delight and a few of fear.
Next George's turn – Shakira turned her beak up – how she hated listening as the crowd watched him strutting along the ground in his 'road-runner' style, making the audience laugh and getting his lunch as he followed the trail of chicken bits Steve was surreptitiously dropping for him to follow.
Eventually her turn came and she was lifted from her perch, her hood gently removed and introduced 'This is my best bird,' Steve announced, 'would you like to watch her fly?' She shook her plumage and looked round – 'Hmmm – lots of little ones today, better not scare them I guess,' – so she flew quite high, refusing the whistle to come lower and glide closer to the children.
Then she spotted them, a bunch of crows – 'Oh no, how annoying, they'll mob me,' she thought – I'll just go sit in that oak tree until they get bored with swooping and shrieking, trying to chase me away.'
The crows were very persistent – 'Must have young, wonder where they are,' she mused. But Steve was whistling like mad, worried she'd go off (it was great fun to do that, fly a couple of miles away and sit and wait whilst he had to abandon the display and go look for her with his fancy bit of electronic homing device) – but she hadn't eaten enough yet so she glided down and landed on his assistants wrist as usual, receiving another chick as a reward, a couple more and she'd be full – Steve was pleased it was all going to plan for a change – the crows had dispersed and Shakira made the momentous decision, this time she'd go, there was another lure more powerful and attractive that the one Steve was swinging – the wild?
First to the tree, then away, soaring up and up into the sky, she did look back and saw Steve quickly packing the other birds back into the car ready to come chase her, but this time she kept going and soon she was rewarded with sight of a pigeon, stooping at 100 miles an hour she caught it easily and that was her supper for tonight. Freedom at last – she roosted in a small woodland, disturbing pigeons and starlings who fluttered around in fear and gradually dispersed to safer hiding places.
Waking next day she flew for miles over wonderful hills and dales, but three buzzards mobbed her; she was surprised at their aggressive behaviour. 'I'm one of you,' she cried, thinking, 'Although of course I'm much faster and more beautiful.' Finding a rocky outcrop the grey and white Saker Falcon sat watching for prey – a pigeon was slow and she caught her meal for the day easily, then slept.
Waking next morning to a huge thunder storm and torrential rain she sheltered feeling cold and wet and very lonely. Apart from the rain there was no other sound, no Brenda and George chattering away, no safe soft voice of Steve – but even worse no other birds or prey – they too were sheltering, so Shakira went hungry for the first time in her life.
When the following day was the same she began to wonder what she'd done, and even began searching for earthworms and carrion on the ground in desperation between cloudbursts. She didn't see the fox creeping up behind her and as he pounced her wet feathers made her too heavy to escape quickly – luckily his first grab just missed her tail and she rose into the air screaming and flapping to gain height.
In shock she sat up in an oak tree and eventually spied a pigeon, sitting on a nearby branch. 'Thank goodness, a meal.' But she was too slow and the pigeon flew away.
By day five the falcon was depressed, losing weight, her once beautiful plumage was now dull and she was even moulting, showing bare patches of skin, sitting in the tree shivering she was now too weak to hunt and was also being mobbed by brave starlings who would normally have departed in a hurry to see a bird of prey anywhere near them.
Meanwhile, Steve had been desperately searching for her, his wide network of falconry friends were also out in various woodlands with their own tracking devices and the frequency of her transmitter that was attached to her tail. Nothing so far and Steve was slowly beginning to think he'd have to buy another Saker falcon to replace his favourite bird.
On the evening of the fifth day he received a call, a dog walker had found a bird, very sick but still alive and taken it to a local vet – Steve was soon on his way to Derbyshire from Essex to identify the falcon. Shakira had finally collapsed with starvation and exhaustion but ironically this had saved her life because the local huntsman had been out walking his gun dogs, the retriever had been trained to gently pick up dead pheasants so the bird had not been harmed.
Shakira finally opened her eyes and there he was, her saviour with his soft, cajoling voice – 'Thank goodness, you silly girl,' he whispered.' I love you Shakira, don't ever do that again.' She recovered and went home with Steve, so happy to be warm, regularly fed and with her friends, George, Brenda and Peewee to chat to, never to be lured into the wild again.
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