In the Altai Mountains in the Bayan Ulgii region of northwest Mongolia, for more than a millennium the steppes have been the pasture land of the Kazakh nomads. This Central Asian people has retained many of their ancient customs including hunting with birds of prey. While in many countries falcons are used for this purpose, the Kazakhs prefer eagles because they are more robust and, in their opinion, also more intelligent.

The Russian word for golden eagle is "Berkut" and that is why Kazakh eagle hunters are known as, "Berkutschi.

At the beginning of October, before the cold arrives, the Berkutschi of the Bayan Ulgii region meet near their capital for a celebration to decide who is best at the competitions. The festival also marks the beginning of the eagles’ hunting season because in winter the fur of the hunted animals is denser, and in the snow the prey is more visible to the eagle.

The eagles are trained not to tear their victims to shreds, nor to destroy the fur so desired by humans, but the eight holes left behind by their razor-sharp claws are inevitable. So the eagle waits until his master arrives with a tempting piece of meat.

Hunting with the eagle used to be solely a man’s domain but now teenage girls have been taught the skills by their fathers and have been practicing it themselves, perhaps in the hope of becoming as famous as Aisholpan, the leading actress in the documentary, "The Eagle Huntress", who has since somewhat adopted the airs and graces of a film diva. Now she puts on make-up and wears white shoes with high heels.

Who knows whether the next generation will stick to the old Berkutschi customs, or whether festivals such as this - as has already happened elsewhere - will merely become folklore shows in order to attract tourists.