Ryan,

Thanks for your thoughts-- they concisely conveyed exactly what I'm trying to express.

Just to clarify, IMO, mantling is learned. Behaviorists will tell you that everything other than Fixed Action Patters, involuntary reflexes and a few other ethological behaviors are learned, and I tend to agree. For mantling to be innate in my mind, it would have to be impossible to raise an imprinted raptor without having it mantle. It's difficult to do, but there are plenty of falconers who've managed to do just that.

That being said, I really don't think it matters. Frankly, I'm appalled that American falconry is obviously devolving in standards. I grew up reading and rereading all the classics: Stevens, Bert, Frederick II, Mitchell, Gilbert, Blaine, etc. I devoured this stuff, and these were gentlemen of the sport who held their birds to the highest standards. They expected birds that hooded well, took game, were feather perfect, and didn't mantle. Their birds were a reflection of themselves, their attention to detail, and their respect for the birds. Sadly, this doesn't seem to be the case for many these days. Maybe it's just a small minority of falconers that I'm picking on, but for the most part I see (either in person or on the multiple list servs I read just about daily) falconers who don't care about anything other than catching game. Yes, this is about having fun, and I'm with Ryan-- I don't give two $#!+s if your bird mantles, screams, or is an otherwise living terror. But, I won't stand for blaming an animal for these behaviors when they are the product and responsibility of the falconer. It's simply about setting aside ego and having the confidence to accept that none of us are perfect, recognize that the animal's behavior is a reflection of our own skill, and be confident enough to embrace that and learn from our mistakes. It's that simple. And again, that's the reason I started this thread, to help those interested falconers learn to analyze behavior scientifically and apply sound operant conditioning techniques to minimize behavior issues and help fix problems that may already be ingrained.

Bill and David, I respect your opinions and we can disagree, but you two are obviously so fundamentally different that I would never voluntarily choose to interact with you in person, let alone this forum. I wish you the best in your falconry.