The Horses of the Sahara and the Manners of the Desert

by E.‏ Daumas

HAWKING.

The sporting equipments of a noble of the Sahara are complete when he has a thair el horr, or a bird of race; for there men of distinction are still addicted to falconry. The thair el horr is of a dark yellow plumage, with a short, powerful bill, thick, muscular thighs, and very sharp talons. It is very rare, and is caught in the following manner. When a thair el horr has been sighted, they put a tame pigeon into a small net, and throw it up into the air in front of the bird of prey, who swoops down upon it. Her talons, however, get entangled in the net, so that she can neither draw them out, nor fly away, and is thus easily secured. When the falcon finds herself a prisoner, she shows no signs of fear or anger. There is a saying in the desert which is often quoted in seasons of calamity:

A bird of race, when she is caught, never frets.

Rings are passed round her legs and she is fastened to a small perch prepared for her in the tent. To accustom her to the presence of men, they cover her head with a hood, which allows only the beak to appear. Her master unhoods her, gives her fresh meat, holds her on his fist, and caresses and speaks to her as much as possible before a numerous company, to accustom her to noise. At the end of a month the bird knows her master, and is thoroughly tamed. They then take a leveret and tie it by one leg, the hawk also being held fast by a very long "creance." They unhood her, and let the leveret go before her eyes. As soon as the bird sees it, she rises into the air, uttering cries. The leveret stops and squats down, when the falcon swoops and kills it with a blow of her talons. The owner runs up, draws the leveret, and gives a portion to the bird. This manœuvre is repeated until the falcon shows no desire to fly away, which is known by her remaining beside the animal she has killed. The falcon, naturally disposed to seize her prey, is further looked upon as trained, when she answers to the call before she has pounced upon her quarry.

Having arrived at this point, the bird may be taken out to hunt. The owner mounts his horse and takes her with him, hooded, and perched upon his head or his shoulders. As soon as he sees a hare, he unhoods her and excites her with his voice. The falcon soars into the air, and swoops down suddenly with a sharp cry, and kills the animal with a single blow; after which the hood is immediately put on again. Sometimes the hare is killed so far off that the hunter cannot bleed it in time, according to the religious injunction; but this inconvenience is obviated by his exclaiming, when he throws off the bird, Bi es-sem Allah! Allah akbar—"in the name of Allah! Allah is great!" If the falcon has devoured a part of the game, the rest may be eaten by the hunter, because the bird of prey has been trained to return to her master when he calls her, and not to eat the game. A bird of race will no more eat carrion than will an eagle. She will kill hares, rabbits, the young of the gazelle, the habara—a bird, they say, as big as a bustard—pigeons, and turtle-doves.

The principal tribes of the Sahara that practice hawking are: in the province of Constantine, the Douaouda, the Selmya, the Oulad-Moulat, the Oulad-ben-Aly, the Sahari, the Oulad-Mahdi, the Oulad-Bou-Azid, the Rahman, and the Oulad-Zid; in the province of Algiers, the Bou-Aysh, the Oulad-Mokhtar, the Oulad-Yagoub, the Oulad-Shayb, the Oulad-Ayad, the Mouidat, the Zenakha, the Abadlya, the Oulad-Naïl; and in the province of Oran, the Hassasna, the Rezayna, the Oulad-Mehalla, the Beni-Mathar, the Derraga, the Harar, the Angades, the Hamyân, the Oulad-Sidi-Shikh, and the Oulad-Khelif; and the inhabitants of all the regions where alfa grows in abundance. Hawking is also pursued in the higher table-lands, on the borders of the Sahara.

REMARKS BY THE EMIR ABD-EL-KADER.

The Arabs recognize four species of birds of noble race, which they employ in the chace. These are the berana, the terakel, the nebala, and the bahara. The berana and the terakel are the most esteemed; especially the terakel, which is the largest—the female sometimes attaining the size of an ordinary eagle. This species has black wings, gray on the under side. The belly is black and white, the tail black, as is also the head when young, but gradually turning gray and then white as the bird grows older. Its beak is very hard and sharp, and its talons solid and vigorous. The berana is less strong and somewhat smaller than the terakel. Its wings are of a whitish gray, its breast white, its tail gray and white, the latter predominating. The head is of many hues, but there also white is the dominant colour. The bahara is almost entirely black, with the exception of a few whitish spots on the breast. "It is a negro, and not worth much." In the nebala, gray predominates; there are some white spots, however, on the wings, and the feet are yellow. All these birds mew at the end of summer.

In certain districts, the following species are likewise valued; the shashin, the aogab, the meguernes, and the baz. The baz is the most courageous. Its plumage is of a dark red, its eyes deep set, with arched eyelids, its shoulders wide apart, its feathers soft, its breast broad, its rump thick, its tail short, its thighs wide apart, its legs white, and its feet broad. The heavier it feels on the hand, the swifter it is on the wing. It is said that its wind is bad.

The bird of noble race is given away rather than sold; whoever catches one takes it to the master of a large tent, who makes him a present in return. It is in the summer-time that they endeavour to procure these noble birds, in order to have time to train them for the hawking season, which is towards the end of autumn. They go to work in the following manner.