Taking Flight with Falconer Samantha Grayson 

Falconry is not a pastime people casually stumble into. For Edmond resident Samantha Grayson, the path started long before she ever held a Harris Hawk on her glove. She worked as a registered vet tech and spent years bow hunting, so she was already drawn to animals and the outdoors. Falconry felt like a natural next step. 

“It really merged my passions together,” she says. “I’ve always enjoyed working with animals, and falconry combines that with my love of hunting.” 

Falconry in its truest form is far from the birds you see perched on stands at fairs. “That isn’t actually falconry,” Samantha explains. Instead, falconers use trained birds of prey to hunt game species. “Instead of a gun or bow, we use the birds. We train them to let us hunt alongside them.” 

Training is food-based and tailored to each species, with the goal of building trust and teaching the birds to fly and hunt cooperatively. Fast learners might be ready in eight to ten days. Others need three or four weeks. Samantha has flown many of Oklahoma’s native birds over the years, including her current Red-tailed Hawk. She also works with a Harris Hawk, a captive-bred species that is rare in Oklahoma. 

Daily life with these birds is not a casual hobby, it’s a lifestyle. Falconers feed, weigh, house, and monitor their birds every single day. “They can gain and drop weight quickly,” Samantha says. “It helps you know their flying range and maintain optimum health. If they’re too heavy or too skinny, they won’t want to fly.” 

The relationship is unique, not affectionate, but deeply connected. “The birds do not love or like you,” she says matter-of-factly. “They understand that you help them do what they want to do, and you help them eat.” Some birds bond to only one handler. “My Red Tail will not work with anyone else,” she says. Her Harris Hawk is more social and will fly with multiple people. 

Samantha, like many falconers, cares for her birds throughout the entire year, even during the summer rest period when the birds molt. Although some falconers release their birds in the spring, she does not. Falconers typically adhere to regular game seasons, with only a brief extension. 

Becoming a falconer takes commitment. “There is a government-required apprenticeship,” she says. First, you pass a state test with a score of at least 80%. Then you find a sponsor who teaches you for at least two years. “It is a lifelong apprenticeship essentially,” she says. “They are a well of knowledge, and if you have a good mentor, you are calling them all the time.” 

The Oklahoma Falconers Association helps connect falconers across the state. “One of the benefits is having a really good community,” Samantha says. “Several times people have lost a bird, posted about it, and immediately had five or ten people helping them locate the bird.” They also hold seasonal meet-ups to foster a sense of community. 

Samantha gives one educational talk each year through Edmond Parks and is open to taking people along on hunts if conditions and land access allow. “Most of the time I’m very willing to take people out,” she says. “I love to educate people of all ages about the beauty and benefits of falconry.” 

At the core of it all is the simple joy of the woods, open sky, and the movement of a bird doing what it was created to do. “Even if we do not catch something, if they are getting good flight, and we are out in nature, it’s a successful day,” she says. 

Learn more about local falconry at okfalconersassoc.com.