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Behind the bid: Why falconers spend thousands chasing the right bird
A falcon that might otherwise be worth Dh50,000 could potentially fetch Dh100,000 if it has the right qualities
- PUBLISHED: Tue 18 Aug 2026, 8:00 AM UPDATED: Tue 18 Aug 2026, 9:15 AM
Breeders and falconers gathered for the second of eight ADIHEX falcon auctions in Abu Dhabi, where buyers spent hundreds of thousands of dirhams on prize birds.
But what determines the value of a falcon?
Training falcons
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For Mohammed Al Kaabi, a falcon's value is not measured only by the number on its auction tag. Sometimes, it is measured by how much patience it teaches you.
The Emirati falconer, who has been involved in falconry since he was in Year 6, said the relationship between falcon and falconer is built slowly, sometimes over hours of simply sitting together. “When you first get it, the bird does not know you,” he said. “You have to break that barrier of fear."
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He recalled spending four or five hours a day with a new bird, keeping it on his hand and even turning on the television so it could get used to sounds and people. “You have to make it understand: 'I am not going to hurt you, I am going to be with you',” he said. It is a process in which even the smallest mistake can affect a bird.
A bird that reacts badly can lose value. Al Kaabi said a falcon that might otherwise be worth Dh50,000 could potentially fetch Dh100,000 if it has the right qualities, including being calm and well behaved.
But for the falconer, the real attraction is not the price. “It teaches you patience,” he said. A newly acquired bird can require hours of attention before it settles, he explained, forcing an impatient person to slow down.
“If you are an impulsive person, the bird makes you calm down,” he said.
Falcons for breeding
For KH Falcons team member Mohammed Nabil, the falcon auction is part of a much bigger business built around breeding, racing and beauty competitions.
The team has breeding operations in the UAE and Britain, while its falcons compete in races and beauty contests. The operation, established in 2023, has already produced birds that have attracted six-figure bids.
One of its falcons sold at the auction for Dh250,000. Nabil said the four- to five-month-old bird is expected to enter competitions when the UAE season begins towards the end of November. The team also produced a falcon that sold for Dh350,000 last year.
Some buyers are looking beyond the individual bird to what it can produce.
One bidder from Qatar, Nabil said, was particularly keen on a female falcon offered at the auction because he had bought a male from the same line the previous year. He wanted a matching pair from the same bloodline, with the long-term goal of producing high-quality offspring.
The buyer eventually stopped at Dh210,000, losing the auction. He later told Nabil that he had “lost the breeding project”.
For KH Falcons, meanwhile, breeding is an increasingly scientific exercise in selection. Nabil said the team looks at bloodlines, size, colour and performance, including rare larger-sized birds.
One of the falcons brought by the team measured about 17.5 inches, making it unusually large for its type. Nabil attributed its size to older bloodlines and careful attention to the parent birds. But ultimately, the bird still has to perform.
Falcons evaluated by performance
Al Kaabi said some falconers buy birds for around Dh25,000 and, if they subsequently perform exceptionally well in competitions, can sell them for substantially more.
“For people who want the bird for hunting, they want a ready bird,” he said. A bird that has already hunted successfully, he added, comes with proof of performance, often documented through videos.
