Translated by Pedro
Genaro Rodriguez
from an article by Narciso Acevedo in Ultima Hora
(March 1, 2002)
NARCISO ACEVEDO
SAN FRANCISCO DE MACORÍS.
As if it would be a show in the sky, the residents of this town enjoy these days the presence of a Falcon that according to some people, has arrived from Germany. It has turned into quite an attraction, but also it is of preoccupation and concern since it is finishing up the pigeons that adorn the beauty of the Duarte Park.
From the Telecommunication towers of Tricom, Centennial, Hibi Radio and some others that surround the public square, the feathers of its plucked prey are falling down. The bird has an antenna attached to its body.
The president of the Municipal Government, engineer Emilio Goris, said that he talked about it with the Director of the Museum of Natural History of Dominican Republic, Doctor Luna Cabral, who has urged the people not to harm the bird. According to Doctor Luna Cabral, the Falcon came to this town from Germany. He revealed that the antenna attached to the bird is for tracking it. He said that the bird also has a plaque that indicates the country of origin.
"The falcon is eating 2-4 pigeons per day, and that worries us, said Emilio Goris. On the other hand, when alerting the people not to harm the bird, Doctor Luna Cabral said that it is part of an experiment, and that their is a treaty between Dominican Republic and Germany to preserve the falcon's life.
However these scientific reasons do not convince the citizens that have in the pigeons of Duarte Park their main source of entertainment.
The show of the bird hunting pigeons has gone so far, that some local TV shows are sponsoring contests of pictures and video, offering prizes to those that can capture the best images of the German falcon.
© Canadian Peregrine Foundation