By Matt Blake


Easy pickings: All this wild wolf can do is wait until the eagle swoops back in for the kill, its razor-sharp talons glistening in the sun


Chained to a post in an open field, this wild wolf can never have felt more vulnerable.

He is used to being the hunter, never the prey.

But now all he can do is wait until the eagle swoops back in for the kill, its razor-sharp talons glistening in the sun.


The helpless animal leaps from side to side, snapping at the giant bird in a vain bid to scare it off.

But this eagle is a well-honed killing machine, trained to slay its prey by the nomadic eagle hunters of Kyrgyzstan.

It is the climax of Kyrgyzstan's ancient hunting festival 'Salburun', in the village of Tyup some 370km from Bishkek near Issyk-Kul lake on May 1.

Desperate: The helpless animal leaps from side to side, snapping at the giant bird in a vain bid to scare it off

Celebration: It is the climax of Kyrgyzstan's traditional hunting festival 'Salburun', in the village of Tyup some 370km from Bishkek near Issyk-Kul lake on May 1


No contest: This eagle is a well-honed killing machine, trained to slay its prey by the nomadic eagle hunters of Kyrgyzstan


The two-day festival draws the regions best hunting dogs, eagle and falcon hunters from all over the nation.

The program of the festival includes falconry, hunting with eagles, archery, and ambler races.

But this is the final event of the festival and draws the biggest crowds.
It is a gruesome battle to the death that almost invariably ends in the eagle's favour.

Wolves are considered a manace in rural Kyrgyzstan, responsible for killing horses, sheep and cows.


source:dailymail

Fair game: Grey wolves are going to become the first animals to be taken off the endangered species list


Grey Wolves are set to become the first animals ever to be removed from an endangered species list meaning that they can be hunted once again.

The animals are now fair game after U.S. Congress agreed to lift federal safeguards the western states of Montana and Idaho.

There are about 1,200 wolves in the wild and their removal from the list means they are now state controlled and allows for licensed hunting.


People against the decision say they fear it opens a 'Pandora's box' that will allow for more animals to be taken off the list


Ranchers, who have seen the population of the wolf growing in the Northern Rockies, have said they are glad that this has happened because of the threat they pose to their herds.

Cattle producers, hunters and state game wardens say that wolf packs in some places are going unchecked as they prey on livestock and other animals such as elk.


source: dailymail