Noticed the turbaned Alan Parrot
" Royal falconer"
a Gyrfalcon on his wrist (Jer-)
a beautiful bird
whose breeding range is north of the arctic circle.
adapted in every way to that habitat.
the princes of arabia may look at it
but it is metabolically unsuited to hunt at temperatures at which water remains liquid.
Very strange choice for the Arabian peninsula
though US falconers use Gyr hybrids to hunt big fat heavy sage grouse
photogenic birds - maybe that's why Parrot chose it?
Patrician background and apparent affection for the world's largest falcon is reminiscent of Kim Philby's father a Brit who famously converted to Islam
>Harry St John Bridger Philby, CIE, also known as Jack Philby or Sheikh Abdullah, was a British Arabist, adviser, explorer, writer, and colonial office intelligence officer.
Falcons and hawks are never tame
if the falconer understands this -
that a falcon is 'service to self'
then the trainer can partner with the bird
"becoming a slave to his bird"
success is possible.
Possibly unrelated:
What has Leon Panetta been up to?
Does he have an operational style?
IDK, asking.