Falconer to Give Demonstration at White Barn Property

The remarkable acrobatic skills of North America’s birds of prey—hawks, falcons and owls—go on display Sept. 22 (Saturday) at the White Barn Property in a free public presentation arranged by the Norwalk Land Trust and called Skyhunters in Flight.

The demonstration by Master Falconer Brian Bradley of New Paltz, NY unfurls at noon on a 15.4-acre tract on the Norwalk-Westport line (at 78 Cranbury Rd.) that the NLT is attempting to purchase and preserve as natural open space with its woodlands, wetlands and meadows.

Activities at the White Barn site run from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and include games for young people and face-painting with a food truck on-site. There is no charge for admission but the NLT says donations would be welcomed.“Come early,” said the NLT, “and enjoy a stroll through the meadows and woodlands.”

Raptors, a prevalent feature of the White Barn property, are remarkable, Bradley says, for their pristine beauty and untamed purposeful nature. They are important to the environment because they provide a critical balance in nature, eliminating weak and sick animals and controlling the number of rodents and pests.

Bradley’s interest in the birds goes back to when he was seven years old and he and his brother resuscitated an injured hawk. By the time Brian turned 14 he was a committed falconer.

The Norwalk Land Trust is a 501c3 nonprofit run by volunteers, stewarding 29 properties in Norwalk totaling 100 acres of open space

Falconer Brian Bradley is to present Skyhunters in Flight Sept. 22 in Norwalk.