Precis

Foreign Correspondent takes a spectacular journey into the wilds of Mongolia in search of an ancient, imperilled tradition – the Kazakh golden eagle hunters.

When a 13-year-old girl called Aisholpan shot to fame in the documentary The Eagle Huntress, her raw Mongolian homeland entranced audiences as well.

Its desolate, otherworldly steppes, valleys and snowy peaks provide the dramatic backdrop for Kazakh tribespeople who cling proudly to their practice of hunting with tamed golden eagles.

As correspondent Matthew Carney soon discovers, it’s a universe away from Hollywood.    

In a quest to meet the surviving eagle hunters, Carney and cameraman Steve Wang take an old Russian jeep forging through mostly roadless terrain in one of the most inhospitable parts of the planet, where the mercury can plunge as low as minus 40.

Winter is the time to hunt – and the Foreign Correspondent team encounters veteran hunter Beken, his son and their golden eagles. After hours of searching, they spot a fox. Then, as the camera rolls, they unleash their powerful birds. 

When I see the eagle fly, I feel free. When she catches a fox I feel great… it’s like magic! – Beken’s son Bakhbergen

The men are custodians of a thousand-year Kazakh tradition that’s threatened on several fronts – climate change, the introduction of guns for hunting and the allure of distant cities.

If my son says ‘I’m going to school far away and I’m not going to become an eagle hunter,’ I cannot tell him otherwise – Beken

Oddly enough, what might help sustain the old tradition is a breath of modern feminism. The Eagle Huntress makes some men bristle - but the exploits of its heroine Aisholpan are inspiring young girls.

Of course girls can do anything boys can do. We are resilient – Akbota, a 14-year-old who trains to be an eagle hunter

Orken, Akbota’s eagle hunter dad, is backing her all the way.

My daughter is very brave. I want to encourage girls like Akbota and Aisholpan  – Orken

Older hunters worry that the practice is dying. But as Matthew Carney reports, there is a youthful optimism among the kids who are learning it.

This is a Kazakh national treasure and I want to do my part to keep it alive - Akbota

Mountain scenery GVs

Music

00:00

SUPER:  ALTAI MOUNTAINS, NORTH WESTERN MONGOLIA

00:04

Eagle flying overhead

00:11

Altai mountain scenery/Travelling in jeep

MATT CARNEY: We’ve come to one of the most world’s least hospitable places, in the depths of winter.

00:16

Carney in jeep. SUPER:
Reporter: MATTHEW CARNEY

This is the time to find the practitioners of an ancient, disappearing tradition – the last eagle hunters of Mongolia.

00:23

TITLE OVER:
THE LAST EAGLE HUNTERS

Music

00:35

Carney in jeep

MATT CARNEY: “To get to the authentic eagle hunters we have to endure some extreme conditions - minus 40 degrees - and we also have to venture to some of the most isolated places on this planet and we hope this trusty Russian jeep will do the job”.

00:41

Jeep travelling across valley floor

There are no roads so we stick to the valley floors. It feels like we’ve landed on another planet. There’s little water and no vegetation. We hear of one eagle hunter who’s training his son to keep the tradition alive. But there are no phones or internet, we just have to go there and hope he’ll talk to us.

01:01

Jeep arriving at house

Music

01:32

Carney gets out of jeep and greets Beken

MATT CARNEY: “We’re here at last! So this is Beken the eagle hunter right?” Beken! Nice to meet you. And your name? Bakhbergen! His younger son? So he’s the one who’s learning to be an eagle hunter”.

Beken lives with three generations of his family including the newest grandchild.

01:43

Baby in crib

Music

02:12

Meal being prepared

MATT CARNEY:  In the evening they give us the traditional welcome, the Besbarmak.

02:16

Music

02:21

Woman serves meal

MATT CARNEY:  “Wow so here it is!”

02:35

Beken gives traditional welcome

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “Dear friends, we have guests from overseas, so our table is bigger. Here’s our food. The main course is the head of a sheep. Every culture respects the head. I wish you good health, good luck with your work and may your journey through life be sweet. May Allah bless us with everlasting happiness and continuing celebrations”.

02:38

Family and guests share meal

MATT CARNEY: Nothing is wasted. Spine, stomach, intestines, organs – it’s all here. Everyone shares and eats with their hands to build stronger bonds.

03:16

“That’s horse meat?”

WOMAN: “Yes”.

MATT CARNEY: “And what’s this over here?”

WOMAN: “This is horse fat”.

MATT CARNEY: “That’s horse fat.

03:28

Is that good for you? Do people like the taste, or why do they eat it?”

WOMAN: “We like the taste and people think it’s also good for the health”.

MATT CARNEY: “Okay. I’ll give it a go. That’s tough. [chewing] I’m not sure about that but the baby loves it. Basically it’s meat, right? It’s the way to sustain everyone”.

03:33

WOMAN: “Yeah we eat meat a lot because climate here in Mongolia is really hard, cold, dry”.

03:58

MATT CARNEY: And for the next ten days, meat is pretty much all we eat.

04:05

View through window into house/Sun rising

Music

04:10

Beken feeds eagles

MATT CARNEY:  Beken Ermyekbai can identify 10 generations of eagle hunters in his family. The golden eagle is at the core of a culture that’s survived more than a thousand years. It’s taken as an eaglet from the nest and raised as their own. A unique bond builds between bird and hunter.

04:19

Beken exits enclosure with eagle

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “You need to keep the eagle in a warm place, and feed her at regular times. You must care for her like a child, as you would your own baby”.

04:43

Beken holds eagle and removes its hood

MATT CARNEY: Eagle eyes are ten times sharper than the human eye. The leather hoods are used to keep them calm. It ensures that they are alert when they’re released for the hunt.

04:53

Beken with eagle

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “My main form of communication is to stroke her. When you do this you mustn’t scare her. She understands when you are scolding or cursing her. Although she doesn’t know any words, she knows when you are being gentle”.

05:04

MATT CARNEY: Beken has sourced about 40 birds for his fellow eagle hunters over the years, but he says this eagle is one of the best hunters he’s had. He’s built total trust with her.

05:21

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “Let me show you her character. Here’s my bare forearm. This golden eagle is different from the others because she doesn’t tear my bare skin. You see? If this was another eagle, it would pull the skin off my hand. The exceptional quality of this bird is that she is gentle with your skin. I’ve handled a lot of birds – 30 or 40 – and they never allowed me to put them on my bare skin.

05:35

She’ll be with me for almost four years. After that, I’ll release her. She needs to continue her life, have chicks and fly free in the sky, to enjoy her freedom and see new places.

06:04

Yes, I’ll be upset then. Of course I’ll be upset to say goodbye. She’s become like a baby to me”.

06:09

Photo. Mongolian couple

MATT CARNEY: Eagle hunting was once mostly about getting food and furs for clothing. These days, it’s more about maintaining culture.

06:29

Beken climbing mountain with eagle

There are probably only about 60 eagle hunters left. Some do it just for the tourists. The fear is that the real hunters could die out within a generation.

06:37

Bakhbergen swinging pelt and calling bird

Beken prays they can survive. Whether they do, might depend on his youngest son, Bakhbergen.

06:54

Beken with eagle at top of mountain. Eagle is released and flies

Music

07:06

Eagle lands on pelt

MATT CARNEY:  It takes five years of training to earn the title eagle hunter. Seventeen year old Bakhbergen is in the final stages.

07:28

Beken and Bakhbergen with eagle

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “Look at me – take a deep breath… put your forearm under her wing… hold the strap… while you’re holding her, let her peck the glove a few times and then put the hood over her eyes”.

07:38

Eagle flies from Beken to land at Bakhbergen’s arm

MATT CARNEY: Now Bakhbergen has to land the eagle on his arm. A rabbit pelt is used to lure the bird.

07:59

Bakhbergen with eagle

BAKHBERGEN: “When I see the eagle fly I feel free. When it catches a fox, I feel great. It’s like magic!”

08:15

Beken explains training

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “When you call your eagle, stand against the wind. Stretch your arm out. Don’t look at the bird, understand? If you do, when she’s trying to land she could scratch you”.

08:25

Beken herding yaks

Music

08:44

MATT CARNEY: The eagle hunters are Kazakhs, their culture’s survived in this remote corner of Mongolia. In neighbouring Kazakhstan, their traditions were lost when Soviet rule forced them into collective farms. Here, they’re still nomads and in spring they’ll take their animals and move to new pastures a hundred kilometres away.

08:48

Music

09:13

Beken collects snow for water

MATT CARNEY: It’s a hard life and daily chores like sourcing water from snow, are a constant struggle.

09:21

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “We are born and grow up here. We know all the valleys and the sky. We have this land.

09:36

Beken releases yak/Daughter milks yak/Baby drinks milk

We have our freedom. We live simply, but our life is not that bad”.

09:49

Beken plays string instrument in yurt and Bakhbergen sings

[singing]

10:12

MATT CARNEY: Beken understands life is changing and knows he may lose his son to city life.

10:26

Beken interview

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “You need knowledge. With the world as it is now, if he says he’s going to school far away and he’s not going to become an eagle hunter, I cannot tell him otherwise.

10:33

It’s hard for me to tell him not to go to school and become a hunter like me and his ancestors. I don’t have the heart to tell him that. That’s why my only wish is for him to teach one of his kids this tradition which has continued for generations”.

10:52

Bakhbergen singing

[singing]

11:14

Carney to camera outside

MATT CARNEY: “The reality is much of the younger generation are not going to take up eagle hunting and frankly I can understand why. It’s impossible to describe how cold it is out here. You have to wear four or five layers of clothing but your hands and your feet and your nose still freeze to death and it’s almost impossible to have a wash. So frankly, the comforts of the city are very appealing”.

11:22

Beken and Bakhbergen climb to eagle’s nest

Before Bakhbergen decides on a future, his father wants to make sure he’ll succeed in the last but most important step in becoming an eagle hunter – getting his own bird.

11:48

Music

12:03

MATT CARNEY: The golden eagles nest high up in the rugged peaks.

12:08

Music

12:11

MATT CARNEY: Bakhbergen will steal an eaglet from a nest. They’re much easier to train and domesticate.

12:20

Music

12:26

Beken ropes up Bakhbergen

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “It’s very dangerous. To do this, the first thing you need is a brave heart – only bravery can get you back down. The rope can snap at any time. That’s why I help my son to get down.

12:29

Bakhbergen climbs to nest

We look for female eagles because the males don’t hunt. The male only delivers light food, such as marmots and mice, to small chicks in the nest. Foxes have more strength and the male eagle doesn’t have enough power to hunt them. That’s why we use a strong female eagle for hunting”.

12:45

MATT CARNEY: But this is just a training run for spring when the eagles will nest. For now, there are just some animal bones in the old nest, remnants of feeding time.

13:20

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “I used to go down on my own, but now I’m getting older and weaker. That’s why I’m training him now”.

13:31

Bakhbergen returns to Beken

Music

13:41

Aerials. Hunters on horses

MATT CARNEY: This is what it’s all about. The hunt is the culmination of all the hunter’s skills and knowledge. They can stay out for weeks and generally work in teams.

13:51

Eagle travels with hunting team

The eagles are kept hooded and perched on a wooden crutch as they have to be carried for days.

14:07

Music

14:13

MATT CARNEY:  We’ve come in winter, the peak time for hunting, when fox and rabbit furs are thick and food is scarce.

14:18

Music

14:25

Beken carries eagle

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “I can’t describe how much fun it is to go out hunting. All the unpleasant things disappear. It radiates energy to me and I leave all my worries, all my pain behind. Everything – my family, my herd, my animals… I live in that moment. Am I going to see a fox? Will my eagle wrestle it down? Aside from that, I don’t think about anything. I feel free”.

14:29

Hunters reach top of hill

MATT CARNEY: They get to the top of the hill and the wind is howling. They watch and wait, scanning the mountains and the valleys around them for hours”.

15:08

Beken with eagle

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “When the prey emerges, we let the eagles go. We take their hoods off and free them”.

15:27

MATT CARNEY: We know it will be hard to watch, but this is what eagles are born to do.

15:34

Beken removes eagle’s hood/

Suddenly a fox is spotted.

15:42

Fox runs/Beken releases eagles

Music

15:43

Eagle catches fox

MATT CARNEY: For a moment it looks like it’s going to get away, but the fox is wounded and the third eagle gets her prey.

16:12

Music

16:20

Beken feeds fox legs to eagle and rides away with fox and carrying eagle

MATT CARNEY:  The dead fox’s legs are fed to the eagles as a reward. Later, they will be given the heart and lungs as well. The owner of the eagle that brought down the prey, will get the pelt. It will be proudly worn as a symbol of success.

16:35

Mountain scenery time lapse

Music

17:01

MATT CARNEY: In a valley nearby, one of the oldest and most respected hunters is contemplating the future.

17:05

Khabyl Khakh sitting with eagle

75 year old Khabyl Khakh hunted every winter for 50 years.

17:13

Archival. Khabyl Khakh and hunters with eagles hunting wold

His team was legendary. They would spend entire winters on the hunt. In this rare archive they’re tracking a wolf which had been killing livestock. It took a week to bring it down.

17:18

Music

17:35

Khabyl Khakh strokes eagle

MATT CARNEY:  Khabyl Khakh says today’s young men lack the passion of their fathers.

17:51

Khabyl Khakh interview

KHABYL KHAKH: “The reason they’re not interested is laziness. Otherwise, why wouldn’t they be interested?”

17:58

Khabyl Khakh watching film of Aisholpan on computer

MATT CARNEY: But some young people are interested and they’re challenging thousand year old traditions. Women are joining the hunt. A young girl called Aisholpan is winning fame as the star of a hit documentary, “The Eagle Huntress”. The film has had an international release, but it’s the first time Khabyl Khakh has seen it. He says it’s not acceptable.

18:04

Khabyl Khakh

KHABYL KHAKH: “In the history of Kazakhs there have never been any eagle huntresses. In the past, women didn’t go up the mountain. They got married and moved away. Being an eagle huntress is a temporary thing”.

18:40

Tolbo GVs

MATT CARNEY: But across these mountains, Aisholpan has inspired others. The town of Tolbo is like others in the region. It’s conservative and Muslim. Women are usually married by the time they’re 18 or 19, raise the kids and look after the home. But it’s here we found 14 year old

18:54

Akbota cooking

Akbota. She’s the most unlikely candidate to be an eagle hunter. She is small and shy, but she is determined to succeed.

19:23

AKBOTA: “Of course girls can do anything that boys can do. We are resilient…

19:33

Akbota interview

and… how do you say…? If you never give up – boys or girls – you can do anything”.

19:42

Orken dresses Akbota in hunting gear

MATT CARNEY: Her father, Orken Baitilkarib, is a respected eagle hunter. He’s backing his daughter every step of the way.

19:55

ORKEN BAITILKARIB: “My daughter is very brave. She’s determined to reach her goals. Girls can do marital arts –

20:04

Orken interview

sambo, judo and wrestling. They’re growing and learning and beating the boys. And even if they don’t beat them the never give up competing and they’re not far behind. We have all seen it! Girls like Aisholpan and Akbota – they are going the right way”.

20:11

Akbota with eagle

MATT CARNEY: He’s been teaching her for three years. They spend every weekend training.

20:35

Akbota on back of motorcycle carrying eagle

ORKEN BAITILKARIB: “When she was eight she started following eagles… showing interest. Basically, she started coming along when we went hunting nearby. She especially loved having the eagle fly to her arm when she called”.

20:45

MATT CARNEY: For Akbota it means freedom – an escape from a future already laid out for most young girls.

21:08

Akbota holds hooded eagle

AKBOTA: “My plan for the future is to teach coming generations about raising and training eagles to hunt. I also want to introduce our eagle culture to the world”.

21:15

Akbota carrying eagle up mountain

MATT CARNEY: At first Akbota struggled even to carry the eagle which can weigh up to 8 kilograms. It took her a year to build up the strength.

21:29

Akbota releases eagle and it flies to Orken

Music

21:41

MATT CARNEY: Now the bigger test, Akbota has to call and land the eagle on her arm.

22:20

Akbota calls eagle

It shows she’s developing a relationship with the bird.

22:30

Eagle flies to Akbota

AKBOTA: “I’m going to perfect the skill of calling the eagle across more quickly. That’s the result I’m aiming to achieve”.

ORKEN BAITILKARIB: “Go around! That way!”

22:44

MATT CARNEY: When an eagle is nearly as big as you, it’s not that easy to control!

ORKEN BAITILKARIB: “Shake it! Yank your arm up! Good, good!”

AKBOTA: “How did it fly?”

ORKEN BAITILKARIB; “That was excellent. Now we’ll do this drill. I will release her, and you will lead her around the formation. When the eagle is about to land you have to go around the other way.

23:02

Land her in on your arm… let her nibble some food”.

23:31

Akbota waving pelt and calling eagle

MATT CARNEY: Akbota is her father’s sole hope to maintain the family’s hunting tradition. Her three older brothers were all sent to university in the city and stayed there for work.

ORKEN BAITILKARIB: “It makes me really happy to see her succeed.

23:35

Orken holding eagle

She’s making good progress, and that makes me proud. I’m also happy for her because she loves this very much”.

23:52

High school/Akbota in class

MATT CARNEY: On weekdays Akbota goes to the local high school. She wants to be a teacher or a journalist and believes she can keep the eagle hunting as well.

24:03

Akbota’s mother teaching

Akbota’s mother, Takhau Oser, teaches Kazakh traditional culture at the school. She knows better than most that things are changing fast and mostly for the better.

24:18

Takhau interview

TAKHAU OSER: “The idea that women can only do domestic chores is ancient. It’s for very old people. In today’s world, girls need to be tough – and be competitive with boys. That’s why I don’t agree with that old ideology”.

24:36

Akbota plays basketball in high school gym

MATT CARNEY: Akbota may not realise it, but she’s inspiring her classmates.

24:59

Carney with Akbota and her classmates

“What does she want to do when she grows up?”

25:08

Girl classmate

GIRL #1: “I want to be a policewoman”.

MATT CARNEY: “Does she think women can do anything that men can do?”

GIRL #1: “Of course!”

MATT CARNEY: “Why?”

25:11

GIRL #1: “There is no difference between the two. If you can, you will”.

25:17

MATT CARNEY: “And what do you think about the girls doing hunting, is it a good thing or a bad thing?”

25:23

Boy classmate

BOY: “I think it’s right. Anyone can do whatever they wish”.

25:26

MATT CARNEY: “What does she want to do when she grows?”

25:29

Girl #2 classmate

GIRL #2: “I want to be a doctor”.

MATT CARNEY: “Does she want to hunt at all?”

GIRL #2: “Yes, I want to. In the beginning,

25:31

when Akbota told the class that she was learning eagle hunting we were very happy for her. We all wished her to be famous, like Aisholpan”.

25:37

Beken’s home valley

MATT CARNEY: Back in the valley where we met our first hunters, they’re not bothered by girls hunting.

25:55

Beken walks with Bakhbergen

Beken has a much bigger worry.

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “I’m now 55 years old.

26:00

Beken interview/Valley GVs

When I was a child, nature was quite different to how it is now. Back then the winter was very harsh. It used to snow so much more. I don’t see that now. I don’t think those winters are coming back. I think climate change, the global warming effect, will spell the end for us eagle hunters”.

26:07

Beken and Bakhbergen build eagle trap

MATT CARNEY: There’s still time enough Beken hopes for his son Bakhbergen to master his hunting skills.

26:37

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “First of all, this top has to be open…”

26:45

Beken interview

“I believe he can be a good hunter one day. He’s doing well. He’s getting used to it. I think he’ll become a better hunter than his old man”.

26:51

Beken and Bakhbergen build eagle trap

“This can trap eagles whether they come from the top or the side. Once they’re inside, there’s no escape. It’s good, right?”

27:01

MATT CARNEY: They don’t always take the eaglets from the nest. Sometimes they trap young adults and tame them.

27:12

BEKEN ERMYEKBAI: “Eagles in spring have the sharpest eyes. She’ll come for the bait here. Her first instinct is to land here”.

27:18

MATT CARNEY: This ancient tradition is under pressure, but young Kazakhs insist it’s in good hands.

27:19

BAKHBERGEN: “I want this to remain part of our Kazakh blood, so that after me there’ll be great people –

27:37

Bakhbergen interview

younger generations who’ll lift up the eagle and preserve our tradition of eagle hunting to continue to be eagle trainers and hunters”.

27:44

Scenery

Music

27:54

Akbota interview

AKBOTA: “If I am brave and determined, I’ll keep doing this. After all, this is a Kazakh national treasure. We need this. I want to contribute my part and teach others, to let it live on”.

27:59

Eagle training

Music

28:18

Credits:

Reporter - Matthew Carney
Camera - Ziyuan Wang
Editor - Leah Donovan
Fixers - Lina Amanjol, Kjalil Adilabek
Post production - Dina Volaric

Executive producer – Marianne Leitch

abc.net.au/foreign
©2017

28:29

Out point after credits

28:45