Partial skeleton of a young sparrowhawk found in the ruins of Viljandi Fortress.Source: Eve Rannamäe, Freydis Ehrlich
Posted on 05/16/2022 8:03:00 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
Zooarchaeology is the study of animal remains recovered from archaeological sites, such as human settlements, graves and fortresses. In her doctoral dissertation, Freydis Ehrlich examines the diversity of birds in Estonian zooarchaeological material and their importance in past societies. Among other things, it turns out that already in the early Middle Ages Estonians trained hunting hawks and organized cockfights...
Until now, Estonian zooarchaeologists have paid attention mainly to mammals and fish. In her recently completed doctoral thesis, Ehrlich investigates which species of birds can be found in zooarchaeological material in Estonia and how people used the birds. "Because there was a good overview of Stone and Bronze Age materials, I focused on the Viking Age to the Early Modern Age, i.e., 10th-18th centuries," Ehrlich explained...
About thirty species of birds came from modern-day Viljandi, including several species of ducks, as well as black grouses, western capercaillies, swans and Eurasian cranes, the last four were related to the inhabitants of higher status. Also present in the findings were smaller species of Galliformes, Accipitriformes, Strigiformes (owls), Columbiformes, Charadriiformes, Piciformes, and Passeriformes...
...since the Viking Age, the most common bird species was the chicken. The earliest evidence of chicken was found in Rebala village stone grave near Jõelähtme and it is more than two thousand years old.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.err.ee ...
Partial skeleton of a young sparrowhawk found in the ruins of Viljandi Fortress.Source: Eve Rannamäe, Freydis Ehrlich
Golden eagles make excellent hunters too- able to take down deer, even wolves, which are routinely hunted with them. Some pretty wild videos of them hunting wolves on YouTube. They are fearless. Hawk hunting though is cool too- falcons are awesome to watch going after pigeons and such- so much power and speed
Thanks for the ping.
I keep a tab open for your previous article on Eagle Hunters - one of the most fascinating studies of humans anywhere.
Falcon breeding and hunting is ancient, and this article today expands on the history of using other animals for help humans survive.
We used to think that dogs and horses were among the first trained animals - perhaps not so much.
Somewhere I read that the dove was the first domesticated bird species. Not true? I can’t tell from reading the article and the internet now says it’s geese.
And chickens weren’t eaten but kept as pets...? Huh...?
Her communication skills were so good that the San Diego Sheriff’s Dept recruited her to work as a dispatcher.
The original drone...and no charging necessary.
There are a couple of hawks that float around in the morning while I’m walking our 15-lb Yorkie-poo. I keep a close eye out...
Beaudreaux, I investigated the cockfights in St. Charles and there are 3 groups involved, The Aggies, the Cajuns and the Mafia.
Seargeant: Great work, how did you come to that conclusion?
Beaudreaux:
I knew the Aggies were involved when someone entered a duck in the cockfight.
I knew the Cajuns were involved when people started betting on the duck.
I knew the Mafia was involved when the duck won.
George: Tamale!
If owls are so wise, why have we never trained them?
The bad thing about cock fights is the wear and tear on a guy’s hip joints.
They want to remain wise. Can you imagine an owl trained on CRT, new math crap, LGBTQ+ garbage and the like?
The bad thing about cock fights is the wear and tear on a guy’s hip joints.
LOL! Maybe you should play piano, instead.
Being in that part of Europe I wonder how many times that castle was under siege?
Probably like waves washing up on the beach.
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