Salbuurun is a complex of traditional Kyrgyz hunting games involving birds of prey and hunting dogs.

Hunting with a golden eagle, falcon, hawk, and taigan (Kyrgyz sighthound) has been an integral part of Kyrgyz culture for centuries. Training these wild predators to work alongside humans required deep knowledge of their character, instincts, and physical capabilities.

Kyrgyzstan is one of the few countries where golden eagles, falcons, hawks, and taigan dogs are still used in real hunting, not for entertainment but as a means of providing food for families. Holding a powerful bird on one’s arm, feeling its weight, the strength of its talons, and witnessing the power of its beak and claws, one cannot help but feel profound respect for this majestic bird with its proud posture and piercing gaze. Traditional hunting targets include hares, foxes, wolves, jackals, and occasionally roe deer.

Dalba is hunting with a falcon.

In this competition discipline, the speed and agility of the falcon’s flight are evaluated through its release toward a lure (wabylо). Each kushchu (falcon hunter) is given three minutes to test their falcon. During this time, the bird must take off and, while in flight, simulate an attack on the lure, which the kushchu swings on a rope. The lure (wabylо) is made from the tail and wing feathers of partridge, pheasant, and pigeon. According to the competition rules, judges record how many times the falcon approaches and simulates an attack on the lure. The winner is determined by the highest total score.