The art id believed to be slowly disappearing as their children move to the city to escape the harsh winters

After developing a relationship with the golden eagles men leave for days during the winter months to hunt

the few remaining eagle hunters will cease to exist in 20 years, Mohan constantly visited the men


Australian photographer, Palani Mohan, spent years in western Mongolia documenting the very few Kazakh eagle hunters still taking part in the ancient tradition.

Only 60 remain, and fearing the tradition may disappear within the next 20 years, Mohani constantly left his family over four years to return to the beautifully barren landscape they call home in hopes of further understanding the men, their families and the golden eagle.

Releasing his years of work in a book titled ‘Hunting with Eagles; In the realm of Mongolian Kazakhs’, the Indian born and Australian raised photographer invites the audience to experience the culture under threat through a series of dramatic duotone images.

A task given to the men of the family, a female eaglet is taken from its nest, usually aged four months, in order to develop a trusting relationship with the hunter and his family.

Females are always chosen as they are believed to be more aggressive, are more powerful and larger than their male counterparts.

As the connection develops between the hunter and his eagle, man and bird head to the mountains during the winter months, sometimes for days to hunt their prey – usually foxes or wolves.

The relationship is known to last between six to eight years before the hunter releases the eagle back in to the wild in order to breed: ‘You love them as your own even when you set them free at the end,’ a hunter told Mohani during his many visits.

In an attempt to avoid the harsh winters where temperatures can reach minus 40 degrees, the hunter’s children are escaping to the capital, Ulan Bator, combined with the depreciating number of golden eagles in the Altai Mountains, the 50 to 60 hunters left are slowly disappearing.

In a book titled ‘Hunting with Eagles; In the realm of Mongolian Kazakhs,’ Australian photographer, Palani Mohan, documented the lives of eagle hunters

Situated in western Mongolia very few Kazakh eagle hunters still take part in the ancient tradition. It is believed only 60 still take part.

A female golden eagle is removed from it's mother's nest, usually aged four months, by a man who slowly develops a special bond

During hunting trips man and eagle can spend days together, further strengthening their relationship creating a special bond

Hunting trips are conducted during the winter months when temperatures can plummet below 40 degrees Fahrenheit

Although all the men in the family are allowed to handle the eagle only the one that took the bird from the nest can take the eagle on a hunting trip

After several years of hunting the birds are released back in to the wild to breed. The hunters generally spend six to eight years with the eagles

The oldest and wisest hunter, according to Mohan, is blind in one eye can hardly hear. During his lifespan he trained around 20 eagles

'The golden eagle is like no other bird. They want to be with you. They love you. And they love to kill for you,' one hunter told Mohan

The strength and power of a golden eagle needs to be seen to be believed. One hunter, over 80kg, recounted the time his eagle flapped her wings causing him to lose balance

A tradition believed to go as far back as 940AD the hunters enter the mountains on horseback when leaving to hunt

Although others may say there are 250 hunters remaining. Mohan says they are just posing for tourists

The ancient tradition is slowly disappearing as their children escape to the capital, Ulan Bator, hoping to escape the harsh winters

Once the hunter spots the prey, he charges toward it causing it to flee in to the open and released the eagle to go in for the kill

Hunters are usually seen wearing fur coats from the animals they kill helping them keep warm during the winter months

Before training can begin, the eagle pup needs to accept food from the hunter and trust needs to be established

All the hunters, according to Mohan, told him they loved their birds more than their wives

A ‘Golden Eagle Festival’ takes place every October to showcase the tradition attracting thousands of tourists from across the world

The barren land has no tall trees, as a result hunter head to high rock faces to find the eagle's nests

The golden eagles take pride of place in the hunters homes and grow to feel comfortable with the hunter's family

A female pup is always chosen for training - they are believed to be more aggressive, are more powerful and larger than their male counterparts

The relationship is known to last between six to eight years before the hunter releases the eagle back in to the wild: ‘You love them as your own even when you set them free at the end,’ a hunter told Mohani

During a hunting trip, the eagle 'sits and waits, and waits, and waits. No-one talks, it's just the wind. And when the eagle is ready it lifts a wing, and with one flap just shoots down like a bullet, and within seconds the whole thing is finished.'

Despite hating the winter Palani Mohan continuously returned to Mongolia to document the lives of the eagle hunters