My magnificent CREATURES

Gazing at the impressive, feathery creature on her arm, Joanne Daffin can’t help but smile. ‘I’ve wanted an eagle owl for as long as I can remember,’ she says. Ten-year-old Wibble watches her intently as she talks, with his piercing bright orange eyes.

Joanne, 40, is a falconer who owns several other captive-bred birds of prey in addition to the large, feisty character she describes as being like ‘her first-born child’. Every summer, she attends shows where she gives static displays of her red kites and owls.

But more than educating the public about