Illinois Administrative Code
Title 17 - CONSERVATION
Part 1590 - FALCONRY AND THE CAPTIVE PROPAGATION OF RAPTORS
Section 1590.80 - Falconry Permits - Classes and Standards
Universal Citation: 17 IL Admin Code ยง 1590.80
Current through Register Vol. 48, No. 38, September 20, 2024
a) Apprentice Class Falconer
1) Permittees shall be at least 14 years of
age. An applicant under 18 years of age must have a parent or legal guardian
sign the application. The parent or legal guardian will be legally responsible
for the activities of the permittee. The permittee's raptor facilities must
pass inspection by the Department before a permit is granted.
2) An apprentice falconer must have a letter
from a sponsor possessing a valid master falconry or general falconry permit,
issued by a state, tribe or territory, who is at least 18 years old and has at
least 2 years experience at the general falconer level, stating that he or she
will assist the apprentice, as necessary, in learning about the husbandry and
training of wild raptors held for falconry, learning about the relevant
wildlife laws and regulations, and deciding what species of raptor is
appropriate for the apprentice to possess. A sponsor who wishes to withdraw
sponsorship of an apprentice class permittee must notify the apprentice via a
registered letter and provide the Department with a copy of the letter and
receipt showing the letter was received. The apprentice shall have 45 days from
the date of the letter to secure another sponsor or shall forfeit his or her
permit.
3) An apprentice falconer
may possess no more than one raptor and may obtain no more than two replacement
raptors during any 12-month period. Any species of the order Falconiform or
Strigiform may be possessed, including wild, captive-bred or hybrid individuals
except a federal or State listed threatened or endangered species, prohibited
species, white-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla), Steller's sea-eagle
(Haliaeetus pelagicus), or golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos). A raptor taken
from the wild as an eyass or that is imprinted on humans may not be possessed.
A wild raptor can be transferred to an apprentice by another falconry
permittee.
4) An apprentice
falconer may take a raptor less than 1 year old, except an eyass, from the wild
only while under the direct supervision of his or her falconry sponsor. Any
Falconiform or Strigiform species may be taken from the wild, except a federal
or State listed threatened or endangered species, prohibited species,
white-tailed eagle, Steller's sea-eagle, golden eagle, American swallow-tailed
kite (Elanoides forficatus), Swainson's hawk (Buteo swainsoni), peregrine
falcon (Falco peregrines), flammulated owl (Otus flammeolus), elf owl
(Micrathene whitneyi) and short-eared owl (Asio flammeus).
b) General Class Falconer
1) Permittees must be at least 16 years of
age and have at least 2 years of licensed falconry experience at the apprentice
class level. A person 16 or 17 years of age must have a parent or legal
guardian sign the application, acknowledging that he or she will be legally
responsible for the activities of the permittee.
2) The permittee shall submit a document from
his or her sponsor to the Department stating that the permittee has practiced
falconry with raptors at the apprentice falconer level or equivalent for at
least 2 years, including maintaining, training, flying and hunting the raptors
for at least 4 months in each year. That practice may include the capture or
release of falconry raptors. No falconry school program or education may be
substituted to shorten the period of 2 years at the apprentice level.
3) A general falconer shall possess no more
than 3 raptors and may not obtain more than 2 replacement raptors during any
12-month period. In accordance with Section
1590.90(c) and
(d), any Falconiform, Accipitriform or
Strigiform species may be possessed, including wild, captive-bred or hybrid
individuals except a prohibited species, a white-tailed eagle, a Steller's
sea-eagle or a golden eagle. Permittees may possess captive-bred individuals
and hybrids of species authorized to be possessed.
c) Master Class Falconer
1) A permittee must have at least 5 years of
licensed experience practicing falconry with his or her own raptors at the
general class falconer level and must submit a statement attesting to the
same.
2) A master falconer shall
possess no more than 5 wild raptors, and may not obtain more than 2 replacement
raptors during any 12-month period. Permittees may possess any number of
captive-bred raptors, however, all raptors must be trained in the pursuit of
wild game and used in hunting. In accordance with subsection (c)(3) and Section
1590.90(c) and
(d), any Falconiform, Accipitriform or
Strigiform species may be possessed, including wild, captive-bred or hybrid
individuals except those of a prohibited species.
3) A master falconer may possess up to 3
golden eagles, white-tailed eagles and Steller's sea-eagles in aggregate for
use in falconry by providing the following to the Department:
A) A letter documenting experience in
handling raptors, including information about the species handled and the type
of duration of the activity in which the experience with eagles was
gained.
B) At least 2 letters of
reference from people with experience handling and/or flying large raptors such
as eagles, ferruginous hawks (Buteo regalis), goshawks (Accipiter gentilis), or
great-horned owls (Bubo virginianus). Each must contain a concise history of
the author's experience with large raptors, which can include, but is not
limited to, handling of raptors held by zoos, rehabilitating large raptors or
scientific studies involving large raptors. Each letter must also assess the
permittee's ability to care for eagles and fly them in falconry. Each eagle
possessed will count as one of the raptors that can be possessed for use in
falconry.
d) Upon completing the requirements needed to enter the next highest class, a falconer may submit a written request for an upgrade to the Department. The Department shall confirm the completion of all requirements and grant the request.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. Illinois may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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