Eagle Trains Hunter Too: Inside Shygys Salburyny

The Astana Times provides news and information from Kazakhstan and around the world.

ASTANA — In falconry, even the master has lessons to learn from the bird he trains. That understanding of an ancient hunting tradition emerged at this year’s Shygys Salburyny festival in the East Kazakhstan Region, where 176 falconers from 10 countries competed in the first Open Asian Cup in traditional falconry.

The annual festival drew nearly 15,000 visitors and more than 50 breeders and trainers of Kazakhstan’s native tazy hunting dogs to the Burkit Tobe ethnocultural complex in Bozanbai village on Oct. 8-10. Participants came from China, Georgia, Hungary, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Mongolia, Russia, Spain, Türkiye and Uzbekistan.

The gathering coincided with Kazakhstan’s efforts to secure further international recognition for its traditional hunting heritage. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) first recognized falconry as intangible cultural heritage in 2010, with Kazakhstan joining the multinational inscription in 2016.

A separate Kazakh nomination, “Salburyn, equestrian Festival with Tazy dogs and Burkyt birds,” covering traditional hunting practices involving golden eagles, tazy dogs and horsemanship, is under consideration for UNESCO inscription in 2026. Representatives of Kazakhstan’s Foreign Ministry and National Commission for UNESCO also visited Bozanbai during the festival.

For Turkish falconer and researcher Dr. Nedim Mutlu Kızılbuga, who first visited Kazakhstan in 2022 to study the country’s eagle-hunting traditions for his doctoral dissertation, the relationship between a hunter and a bird of prey has become a subject of both academic research and personal experience.

“People generally think that humans train eagles and use them for hunting. That is partly true, but during my field research, I realized something else: Eagles also train humans. When a falconer trains an eagle, without even realizing it, they learn to become more disciplined, hardworking, generous and patient,” Kızılbuga told The Astana Times.

“One of the most interesting findings of my dissertation was that it is not only the human who trains the eagle, but the eagle who trains the human,” he said.

Now on his fourth visit to Kazakhstan, Kızılbuga returns regularly to meet the local falconers he first encountered during his research.

Where precision decides the winner

The Open Asian Cup introduced a new competitive dimension to Shygys Salburyny, which began in Bozanbai in 2021 as Qansonar, a Kazakh term referring to ideal hunting conditions when animal tracks are visible on fresh snow, before becoming an international festival in 2022.

Golden eagles, hawks and falcons competed in exercises testing their responsiveness, flight control and hunting abilities. These included recalling birds from distances of up to 700 meters, shyrga, in which handlers swung a lure from side to side to test the birds’ ability to follow its movements, and live-prey hunting involving foxes, hares and pigeons.

Yeltai Muptekeyev, a competition judge, explained how the scoring system determined which participants advanced.

“Each category has its own rules. The participants are assessed based on their performance and timing. We have a scoring system, and those who earn the highest points advance. Even a difference of one point can determine the winner,” Muptekeyev told The Astana Times.

Young falconers learn together with their eagles

Among the participants was Aisulu Bekniyazova from Almaty, who discovered falconry through an Instagram casting announcement about a year ago. She began training under Ayazhan Daniyarkyzy, a falconer with five years of experience, and made her competitive debut in Bozanbai alongside her young golden eagle, Mangaz.

“I think one of the most special aspects of this sport is the bond between the eagle and its handler. The eagle I am holding is still young, just like me, and it does not have much experience yet. We are participating in a competition together for the first time,” said Bekniyazova.

Daniyarkyzy added that birds often come to reflect the character and temperament of their handlers.

“Aisulu is a little shy and sometimes nervous, but when she speaks, she expresses herself very clearly. She is the kind of person who prefers to prove everything through actions rather than words. (…) Mangaz has turned out to be a very quick learner, but Aisulu herself really surprised us,” Daniyarkyzy told The Astana Times.

Under the guidance of her own mentor, experienced falconer Sultanserik Beketuly, Daniyarkyzy also trains girls as young as 14, beginning with exercises that help handlers and birds become accustomed to one another.

“We begin with simpler exercises, such as calling the eagle to land on their hands. It is important for both the person and the eagle to get used to one another. You can gradually see when they begin to understand each other and establish a connection. Only after that does the actual training begin,” she said.

One practice, different traditions

For international participants, the competition offered a closer look at how hunting techniques and equipment differ across countries.

Spanish falconer Julen Bara Lanas, who has practiced falconry for 16 years and now directs a zoo in Spain, was visiting Kazakhstan for the first time. He observed differences in how birds are handled, particularly the use of horses and traditional equipment.

“In Spain, we use the left hand because we don’t ride on horseback. We are walking with the birds, and that is one of the differences I see between Spain and Kazakhstan. Also, in Spain, if you want to buy a glove, it is manufactured rather than made by an artisan. Here, I love that people have all these things handmade by themselves,” Lanas told The Astana Times.

Hungarian falconer Bence Fábos, who also hunts with golden eagles, noticed a similar distinction between hunting on foot and horseback.

“We hunt in Hungary only on foot. Here, you do it on horseback. This is the motherland of falconry, and I’m very happy to be here now. You have very good horses and birds,” said Fábos.

He also viewed falconry as a way for younger generations to maintain direct contact with nature amid growing reliance on technology.

“Falconry is part of nature. People who practice it become part of nature and live in it. This is very important because, as technology develops, we forget nature, animals and our culture,” he said.

The tazy’s place in Kazakh hunting culture

Birds of prey were not the only hunters tested in Bozanbai. The festival also included races for tazy, the Kazakh hunting sighthound traditionally used to pursue game across open terrain.

Erzhan Zhaiyk, from Asubulak village in Ulan district, won the tazy competition with his two-year-old dog. 

“I have been training tazy dogs for about two years. The most important thing is training. I take my tazy out into nature every day, covering around 20 to 30 kilometers. If you maintain a proper diet and nutrition alongside regular training, the dog will get into very good physical condition,” said Zhaiyk.

Birds of prey were not the only hunters tested in Bozanbai. The festival also included races for tazy, the Kazakh hunting sighthound traditionally used to pursue game across open terrain.

“The tazy is a national treasure of the Kazakh people. Our ancestors have kept and raised tazy dogs since ancient times. As people used to say, one tazy could provide food for an entire village. Traditionally, we do not even call a tazy a dog. It is considered a sacred animal. Our ancestors valued tazy dogs very highly,” he said.

Birds of prey were not the only hunters tested in Bozanbai. The festival also included races for tazy, the Kazakh hunting sighthound traditionally used to pursue game across open terrain.

Beyond the falconry and tazy competitions, the festival featured traditional horseback events, including horse taming, mounted archery and tenge ilu, in which riders retrieve coins from the ground at a gallop. Visitors also watched tug-of-war and the traditional Tolagai strength contest, attended concerts featuring Kazakh performers and explored 50 yurts showcasing local crafts, cultural traditions and the history of East Kazakhstan’s districts, alongside an artisans’ fair.

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