A Falconer's Memoir
Brief Synopsis
Cast & Crew
Dan O'brien
Erney Hersman
Ruth Bylander
Bill Harlan
Hank Harris
Keith Hathaway
Film Details
Technical Specs
Synopsis
Nesting high on Bear Butte, peregrine falcons once hunted the skies above the grasslands at its foot and feasted on songbirds, ducks and other fowl. Peregrines take their prey in flight, diving in on the birds at fantastic speeds. However, unknown side-effects of agricultural chemicals used in the 1950s and 1960s, especially DDT, left many peregrines unable to reproduce and caused their eggs to have such thin shells they broke when the parents sat on the nests. Eventually, the peregrines were gone. Falconer, author and environmentalist Dan O'Brien attempts to train three young peregrine falcons at his ranch near Bear Butte, South Dakota. One of the birds heads for freedom during training; another is destined for a program elsewhere. But one, named Thelma Louise, remains under O'Brien's control and becomes the focus of his summer. Together, O'Brien and fellow falconer Erney Hersman prepare Thelma Louise for the hunt.
