Le Faucon Solognot, 1st Falconry and Hawking school in France, since 1995 !
The History…
It opened in 1995 in Sologne, 150 km South from Paris. The purpose of this school was to allow anyone interested in Falconry, to be able to discover birds of prey and falconry, as an actor and not as the viewer of a show
However, very quickly the school developed as well in various activities, all of them connected with raptors, such as shows, breeding programs, avian control, cinema, etc…
Francis Cohu, over 30 years of experience in birds of prey and their breeding, (director of the breeding centre of Kintzheim (67) for 10 years, creator of the birds of prey show of the Puy du Fou (85) and the Donjon des Aigles of Montrichard (41)…) and Brigitte, his wife, a long time owl lover, a former Air France, Swissair and Condor Hydrofoils Hostess, both keep on trying to share their love for their birds and to show raptors as special beings to be loved, respected and protected.
Both are deeply involved in their protection and the development in France of pest control with raptors, a modern and ecological mean of getting rid of the nuisance caused by pigeons, starlings, cormorants, rabbits…, whose number might damage human activity.
From 1998 till 2005, Barbour France (www.barbour.com) warmly encouraged their plans of development and has generously supported their projects and Sérigraphie Rabet l’Image (www.rabet-image.com) has printed their posters, stickers ...
Initially opened in the 17th Century castle of the Gondelaine, a 120 ha property close by Cheverny castle, in the « Sologne viticole », and after a short stay in the south of the Berry, le Faucon Solognot moved back to « Grande Sologne » in the small village of Ligny le Ribault, in 1999, just in between Orléans and Chambord.
Nested in the middle of the woods, 60 and odds eagles, vultures, falcons and owls of all kind live peacefully, far away from the town noise and disturbance, for the greatest pleasure of the trainees, happy to make such a dive in the Sologne biotope…
The Falconry school and Hawking days
Le Faucon Solognot organize Falconry tuitions, French or English spoken, all year round, for beginners and confirmed trainees from the age 11.
Tuitions are given for small groups of max. 4 people, or for larger groups (with less handling of the birds, of course).
Meals can be provided locally by Auberge de Villeny, 4km away and Accommodation can be found nearby, in “gîtes” and B & B.
Provided you own a valid hunting license, we can organize hawking days with Harris Hawks for small groups of 8 people maximum
The shows
The Faucon Solognot will perform Birds of prey shows on demand, within the European community. The shows can be presented outdoors, with various large eagles, falcons, Hawks, vultures and owls but as well indoors with small eagles like Harris hawks and a large variety of owls.
The shows can be commented in English (and even if painfully, in German…)
Breeding programs
A breeder of more than 30 years of experience, Francis Cohu was a pioneer in breeding birds of prey when he succeeded to breed and artificially raise the 1st Andean Condors in Europe and more than 300 falcons, hybrids, all kinds of eagles, vultures and owls in the eighties.Nowadays, le Faucon Solognot breeds mainly Harris Hawks, Red tail Hawks, American Black Vultures, but specialized in various owls such as Ural owls, Barn owls, Tawny owls and Great Grey owls…
