Chapter 24 Xiao Tao's First Experience Releasing a Hawk
With the previous Sand Grouse as a base, the newly caught Flying Dragon naturally couldn't be killed by the hawk. Yue Feng quickly took the dead bird, swapped it for the Flying Dragon, then stuffed the bird into a sock and handed it to Xiao Tao.
"So, these Flying Dragons are quite easy to catch!" With the third prey in hand, Xiao Tao couldn't help but exclaim.
Catching Flying Dragons in the woods, in Xiao Tao's opinion, was indeed quite easy. In this kind of open mountain area, good eyesight could see over a hundred meters away, and Flying Dragons were rather dull and not very afraid of people. Encountering a Northern Goshawk that did hard work, it was naturally a piece of cake.
"What you know isn't hard, what's hard is what you don't know!" Yue Feng pursed his lips.
"Feng Ge, if we encounter prey again, can you let me release a hawk to get a taste?" Xiao Tao said, shamelessly inching closer.
"Got some ideas?" Yue Feng chuckled, narrowing his eyes.
"Anyway, you're already skilled at releasing the hawk, just let me try!"
Yue Feng stopped teasing his brother and nodded, "Alright, but you need to pay attention to a few details!"
"Tell me!"
"First, there's a technique to holding the hawk flat. It should be like this, and then like this..."
Yue Feng taught Xiao Tao the technique of holding and releasing the hawk flat, as well as detailed skills like how to approach prey and how to release the hawk, without any reservations.
The two brothers walked and whispered to each other. After walking less than another li, Xiao Tao spotted three Flying Dragons moving on the ground at least fifty meters away.
"Ge! Look over there, chickens!!!" Xiao Tao excitedly pointed at the distant prey for Yue Feng to see.
Yue Feng nodded without speaking, then held his right hand flat in front of Xiao Tao, opening his five fingers.
At this moment, the Saker Falcon, already used to being gently held flat by hand, was comfortably lying in Yue Feng's palm. Even when Yue Feng loosened his fingers, the Eurasian Sparrowhawk (Female) didn't move, still maintaining a resting posture.
"Hold the hawk gently. Your hand is slightly smaller than mine, so hold the hawk flat slightly lower. The wing joint is too wide, you won't hold it steady. Remember to aim the Eurasian Sparrowhawk (Female)'s talons towards the center of your palm!" Yue Feng again taught Xiao Tao some practical details about holding and releasing the hawk on the spot.
Under Yue Feng's careful teaching, Xiao Tao quickly held the Da Qing Yao flat in his hand.
It must be said, some things look easy, but when you actually do them yourself, it's not that simple.
Xiao Tao's fingers were slightly shorter than Yue Feng's, and holding the Da Qing Yao flat was very difficult. A typical Eurasian Sparrowhawk (Female) weighing around half a jin is already somewhat strenuous for an adult's palm to hold flat, let alone Yue Feng's top-grade specimen weighing seven and a half liang with its round bulk.
Xiao Tao, holding the hawk flat, had unsteady steps, like someone stealing a landmine. His right forearm was held flat, palm facing up holding the hawk flat, as he crept towards the location of the Flying Dragons in the distance.
What surprised Xiao Tao was that the previous Flying Dragon, Yue Feng could approach to about twenty meters without it flying away. But this time, with Xiao Tao, as soon as he got near thirty meters, the leading Flying Dragon bird raised its neck very alertly and stared intently at Xiao Tao.
When Xiao Tao walked two more steps forward, the alert Flying Dragon bird let out a sharp "zizizi" alarm, and the three birds instantly wanted to run.
"Release!" At the critical moment, Yue Feng reminded him from behind.
Xiao Tao snapped back to reality, held the hawk flat, raised his hand, and threw it out.
This Northern Goshawk, from the time it was netted and tied by Yue Feng until now, had never experienced such an awkward release posture. After leaving his hand, it forcefully adjusted its flight posture, flapped its wings with all its might, and chased after the already airborne Flying Dragon bird.
Over thirty meters away, the prey detected them early, and the novice Hawk Keeper's flat release technique was poor. None of the three conditions were advantageous, but the Northern Goshawk's strength was exceptional, and its drive was also very strong. It chased after the taking-off Flying Dragon bird.
With this chase, it flew at least seventy or eighty meters away. The Da Qing Yao kept pursuing the target until below the mountain ridge, where it then did a mid-air roll and grabbed the prey.
Xiao Tao, who had released the hawk, was a bit confused, not understanding where he went wrong. He had just watched Feng Ge release the hawk, and it seemed quite simple!
"Don't just stand there stunned, hurry and chase! If you're two steps late finding the hawk, it will have eaten its fill!" Yue Feng patted Xiao Tao's shoulder, swung his two long legs, and sprinted madly in the direction the hawk had chased.
Fortunately, this area was quite open. After chasing for fifty meters, Yue Feng saw from a distance the Da Qing Yao in its classic pose, stepping on the Flying Dragon bird and plucking its feathers one by one at the bottom of the gully.
Yue Feng slowly walked over with the dead Sand Grouse, the 'old actor', squatted down, covered the prey with his gloved hand, and swapped the food. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.
In less than a hundred meters, this Flying Dragon bird's neck and forehead feathers were almost completely plucked by the hawk. If it had been ten or eight seconds later, the hawk would have drawn blood and officially started eating, and the Flying Dragon bird would most likely not have survived.
Watching the Northern Goshawk step on the Sand Grouse and peck at it bite by bite, Yue Feng breathed a sigh of relief beside it. At this moment, Xiao Tao, who was half a beat slower, also came puffing and panting after him.
"Here! The little chicken we just caught! A few more seconds later, its neck would have been torn open!" Yue Feng stuffed this Flying Dragon bird into the sock, pointing at the Flying Dragon bird's bald head as he spoke.
Huff... puff puff...
Xiao Tao's breathing was rapid due to nervousness and sprinting. At this moment, he wasn't showing off anymore, his head full of questions, not knowing where the problem was.
He put the bald Flying Dragon bird that had escaped the hawk's beak into his backpack, and slowly his breathing stabilized.
Seeing that the hawk had eaten enough, Yue Feng repeated his trick, took off the 'old actor', then perched the hawk on his hand, and naturally stroked the Northern Goshawk's back and chest.
The Saker Falcon was very receptive to this kind of stroking, tilting its head and squint ing its eyes, the downy feathers around its eye sockets all spread out.
"Is your head full of questions, not knowing where the problem was?" Yue Feng glanced at Xiao Tao, asking as if he could see through Xiao Tao's thoughts.
Xiao Tao nodded, "Yeah! Why is it that when you held the hawk flat and released it, you could get so close? I felt like I wasn't making any noise when I crept forward, but the chickens flew away from a distance!"
Yue Feng pursed his lips and explained, "Because of your eyes!"
"Huh? What eyes?"
"Because of your eyes! From a distance, you were already creeping forward stealthily, your eyes constantly staring at those few Flying Dragon birds in the distance!"
Your steps were stiff, and your eyes were constantly fixed on the chickens. The other party could clearly sense your hostility! Naturally, they prepared to run away from a distance. Were they going to wait for you to catch them?!"
"Huh???" Xiao Tao's head was a bit confused after hearing Yue Feng's explanation.
He had thought of several possibilities, but he hadn't thought he had any problems himself. However, after hearing Yue Feng's explanation, it seemed that this explanation also made sense, and it was very likely the truth of the matter.
"Next time, watch me!"
Even if you see the target, don't keep staring at it intently. Learn to scan the prey with your peripheral vision. When walking, keeping your voice down is right, but don't be too stiff, be a bit more natural!
Lastly, the angle at which you released the hawk while holding it flat was terrible. The essence of the flat release is to push the hawk out horizontally, giving it enough initial speed. You, on the other hand, were lucky you were tall. If you were twenty centimeters shorter, the hawk would have directly hit the ground!
Let me just say this, the reason this Flying Dragon was caught was purely because the Northern Goshawk was strong enough. You, this temporary Hawk Keeper, didn't help at all; you were a hindrance!
When I release the hawk next, observe carefully and don't be overconfident and unskilled anymore!"
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