A bird of prey that disappeared in Powys was found by its owner after two days apart, just five minutes from where the bird first vanished.

On Thursday, September 19, Julie Almond was flying her Harris Hawk, named George, when she lost sight of him between Llanbrynmair and Commins Coch when the wind picked up.

After two days of searching, she was able to find the hawk again almost at the exact same spot where they were first separated.

She said: “We were out flying for exercise when the increase in wind seemed to carry him down the valley. That can sometimes happen with birds of prey while flying, in windy conditions they might not have a lot of control over which direction they go in.

“I lost sight of him but could tell he’d ended up at least a mile away from where I last saw him.

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“I walked around the area for about two hours after losing him, seeing if I could find him or if he had tried to fly back, but assumed he needed less wind or more time to get his bearings before flying back.

“The next day I walked for about nine miles looking for him. He had telemetry at the time he went missing but it wasn’t working. I’m guessing there was a loose connection as it was definitely on and the batteries were working.

“On the second day, rather than walk I rode a pony out along the track. While I was doing that my friend Sarah had shared some social media posts about George being missing and kept an eye out for any sightings.

“She called me to say she’s received a call from someone who spotted a hawk in the area.

“I reached a junction on the path and wanted to turn right, but my pony took me left, which I assumed was because he’d smelled another horse along that path. But then that was when I found George.

“In the end he turned up less than five minutes away from where I’d first lost sight of him. After being carried a mile away by the wind he made his way back to almost the exact spot where we were.

“It’s incredible, being a Harris Hawk, he doesn’t migrate but it goes to show how strong their homing instincts are.

“He’s fit and well after the adventure and seems very keen to get back out there again.”