As Paul carefully explains, Lemmy's job isn't to eat the pigeons (and seagulls and crows), although he's more than capable of doing so - Lemmy's job is to keep them on their toes ..... or should that be wings? Funnily enough when a pigeon sees a bird of prey they don't fancy hanging around.
Lemmy (named after the lead singer of metal band Motorhead) is a 3 year old male Harris Hawk, and when he's not here in Canary Wharf you might find him in and around Trafalgar Square, where he performs the same role. The average life expectancy for a Harris Hawk is 15-20 years, so you may well see Lemmy out and about for many a year to come.
Paul is a full time falconer from Hawkforce, who not only provide pest control services (sounds odd when you put Lemmy's job in those words), but also provide Falconry Experience Days. Paul raised Lemmy from a chick, as he did with other hawks that you might find on his arm. Paul tells me that Lemmy isn't your everyday Harris Hawk, as he has traits more normally associated with a falcon. Falcons typically prey on other birds when in flight, whilst hawks typically prey on land-based animals, like mice. So Lemmy is a bit of an all-rounder. You'll also be relieved to know that Lemmy really does like his perch on Paul's arm, so don't expect him to land on your head any time soon!
We're going to finish with a pic of Lemmy's feet, because, well, they're just awesome!
