The Kazakh Tradition of Hunting on Horseback with Golden Eagles
In the rugged Altai Mountains of western Mongolia, Kazakh nomadic hunters known as berkutchi forge lifelong bonds with golden eagles. Hunters capture young female eagles from wild cliff nests, training the massive raptors to hunt foxes and hares across snow-covered steppe alongside their horses. After years of hunting partnership, the eagle is ceremonially released back into the wild.
Nomadic Roots in the Altai Mountains
Across the high, windswept steppes and jagged peaks of Central Asia, falconry developed not as an aristocratic sport, but as an essential survival strategy. For nomadic pastoralists moving across vast territories with their herds, hunting with raptors provided a dependable method for securing meat and harvesting valuable warm pelts during harsh winters. While smaller birds like falcons and hawks were common throughout Eurasia, the Kazakhs and Kyrgyz developed a distinctive practice centered on the largest avian predator of the steppe: the golden eagle.
In the isolated valleys of the Altai Mountains, particularly within the Bayan-Ölgii province of western Mongolia where a large Kazakh diaspora preserved traditional customs, this practice survived shifts in geopolitics and modernization. Known in Kazakh as berkutchi, these eagle hunters maintain a deeply rooted cultural identity tied to their horses, the rugged landscape, and the formidable raptors they train. The craft represents an intricate synthesis of field biology, equestrian skill, and animal behavior passed down through families over generations.
The Choice and Acquisition of the Raptor
Golden eagles (known as berkut) are among the most powerful birds of prey, possessing immense talons, keen eyesight, and wingspans that can exceed two meters. Berkutchi specifically seek out female eagles for hunting. In raptors, females are considerably larger and heavier than males, giving them the physical mass and grip strength required to tackle swift and potentially dangerous terrestrial quarry such as corsac foxes, red foxes, and hares.
Acquiring an eagle requires daring and precise judgment. Hunters typically locate nests built high on sheer cliff faces and scale the rock walls to capture a young bird, often just before it fledges. Taking a fledgling ensures the bird is already robust and has been fed by its natural parents, but has not yet developed an untamable wariness of humans. Alternatively, hunters sometimes trap young adult eagles using nets and live bait, a method that yields an experienced hunter but demands a more rigorous and patient taming process.
The Art of Taming and Gear of the Berkutchi
Training an apex predator requires establishing mutual trust rather than using physical force. The berkutchi spends weeks in constant contact with the new bird, hand-feeding it raw meat, speaking or singing to it, and acclimating it to the presence of family members, dogs, and horses. To keep the eagle calm and prevent sensory overload from the vast landscape, the hunter covers its head with a close-fitting, decorated leather hood called a tomaga. The hood is only removed when the eagle is fed or when game is spotted.
Because a mature golden eagle is extraordinarily heavy to carry on an outstretched arm for hours while riding, the hunter relies on specialized equipment. The berkutchi wears a thick, padded leather gauntlet on the right forearm to withstand the bird's crushing talon grip. While mounted on horseback, the weight of the arm and eagle is supported by a baldak, a Y-shaped wooden prop affixed to the front of the wooden saddle. Long leather jesses, or balaqbaq, secure the bird's legs to prevent premature flight.
The Dynamics of the Winter Hunt
Eagle hunting is conducted predominantly during the late autumn and winter months. The season is chosen for practical reasons: snow cover makes it easier to track game across the open ground, and the winter coats of foxes and other fur-bearing animals are at their thickest and most valuable. Hunting parties ride out in small groups, ascending rocky ridges and high promontories where the hunter can gain a commanding view of the surrounding valleys.
When an animal is spotted in the distance, the berkutchi unhoods the eagle, points its head toward the quarry, and utters a distinctive vocal cry to trigger its hunting instinct. Launching from the rider's arm, the eagle uses thermal updrafts and its powerful flight to build speed before stooping down upon the target. The eagle uses its talons to pin and incapacitate the quarry on the snow. The horseman gallops quickly to the site to secure the animal and reward the raptor with a portion of fresh meat, reinforcing the bond of cooperation.
The Sacred Release and Cultural Continuity
Unlike domestic working animals, a hunting eagle is never kept for its entire lifespan. Berkutchi hold a deep reverence for the birds and recognize their vital role in the wild ecosystem. After an eagle has hunted with a master for a customary period of several years, typically before the bird reaches its prime breeding age, it is released. The hunter rides to a high mountain pass, feeds the eagle a final ceremonial meal, and removes all leather gear, allowing the bird to return to the wild to mate and rear wild offspring.
This balance between human utility and environmental stewardship has allowed the tradition to endure for centuries. Recognized globally as a masterwork of intangible cultural heritage, the berkutchi tradition is celebrated through annual gatherings, eagle festivals, and community competitions where horsemanship and raptor recall are tested. The practice remains a living symbol of Kazakh cultural pride, demonstrating how nomadic traditions sustain a sophisticated partnership between humans, horses, and wild predators.
Key takeaways
•Kazakh eagle hunters (berkutchi) specifically train female golden eagles because their larger body size and strength enable them to subdue foxes and hares.
•Hunting takes place on horseback during winter, utilizing specialized gear like the tomaga (leather hood) and baldak (saddle-mounted arm support).
•Training relies on intensive habituation and positive reinforcement through food rather than physical coercion.
•Hunters maintain the wild population by ceremonially releasing their eagles back into nature after several years of partnership so the birds can breed.