The Falcon Finds His Mate Archives -

Whisker Wisdom Caterview with Crealde! I’m launching this series with Crealde, a 19-pound pure white male feline with a real ‘catitude.’

Crealde is the first Caterview! He first appears in The Falcon Finds a Mate by Candace Colt

If you’ve read the stories, you appreciate how difficult it was to get him to sit for this interview.

After all, it was my idea, not his. If you know cats well, you know they don’t do anything they don’t want to do.

He can be a bit aloof to say it nicely depending on his mood. Graciously, he agreed to our chat. But, under one condition. The interview must be all about him. We struck a good deal, especially when I reminded him he was the first in the Caterview series.

Crealde’s human is Echo Stargazer, an eccentric psychic mind reader. They live on the second floor of their Pepto Bismol pink home in Nocturne Falls, Georgia. Echo’s fascinating Carpe Diem shop is on the first floor, full of potions, oils, costumes, gems, books, and assorted magical knick-knackery. In her private quarters, Echo gives psychic readings.

I met Crealde in the garden behind his and Echo’s home, where he was seated like a palace prince waiting for me to curtsy. As I ran my fingers through his beautifully long pearl-white fur, I swear his purr revved like a B-52 airplane engine. Realizing how cat-like he was acting, he quickly snapped back into character.

ME: Crealde, good to see you. We haven’t had a chance to catch up for several years. How’s it been going for you?

CREALDE: (He gave a long, squeaky, wide-mouthed yawn and a noticeable shrug.) Things are good. The litter box stays clean. I go in and out as I please. I’m fed well.

ME: I would agree with that last point.

C: (Crealde raised a paw in warning and let out a ‘meorowoww’ that shook the pen out of my hand.) Ah ah ah. No innuendos about my size.

ME: I didn’t mean to come across as fat-shaming you. But you do have a bit of a reputation.

C: Don’t go there, lady!

ME: (With a wink to you, reader, a character once compared his size to a child’s ottoman.) I understand you still live upstairs over the Carpe Diem. Did Echo ever return?

C: I do. She did.

ME: Can you elaborate? Did she tell you much about her extended trip?

C: Not much to tell. She ran off with her Tai Chi instructor and then came back.

ME: So our readers don’t get the wrong impression, she didn’t exactly run off with him, Crealde. Echo, whose age is a matter of dispute and is at least in her late eighties, practices Tai Chi weekly with Master Cheng and has done so for years. One day, with no warning, she left a note saying she’d traveled back to China—that is, back to China three hundred years ago with Master Cheng. She made one brief return visit and another for her granddaughters’ weddings, but I never heard if she returned for good.

C: If ‘for good’ means ‘forever,’ I tend to doubt it. She is back for now. Business is going well. Her psychic reading schedule is packed. It’s too full if you want my opinion. Always someone tramping in and out. It’s hard to get a good day’s sleep.

ME: It’s been said that you have three waking faces. Sleepy. Angry. Skeptical. Is that a fair assessment?

C: (He cocked his head to the side and thought a moment, then I swear he gave me the slant eye.) Fair, indeed. But I’d add another: bored.

ME: Most residents in Nocturne Falls are magical. The rest are regulars who are only aware of the magic. But you don’t have a gift. Does that bother you?

C: (He dipped his head, adding a disgusted headshake.) Hello, human writer! Are we not talking right now? Besides, cats are innately magical. I understand humans—all kinds of humans—just fine. Probably better than they know themselves. I choose not to talk to them. Consider yourself lucky.

ME: Fair points. And I appreciate you’re honoring me with this conversation. Are there any magicals you really can’t stand?

C: I am not fond of anything that shifts into a critter with claws or talons that would consider me their dinner. The exception is the Ford family. They are all falcon shifters, but to my knowledge, they’ve never snacked on a cat or dog. I like them.

ME: Good thing since the Ford brothers married Echo’s granddaughters. How are they doing, by the way?

C: You’ve asked about someone else twice now. The deal, remember? (Crealde made another noisy yawn.)

ME: I’m sorry. You’re right. I’m sure you have a tight afternoon schedule. Is there anything else I should mention to our readers before we end?

C: (He made a long, languid front and back stretch.) Nope.

Crealde trotted away, his backside to me, and his tail lifted straight up. Evidence to me that this was the ‘end.’ He stopped halfway and flashed a glance over his shoulder.

C: This went well, don’t you think?

ME: Yes, very well.

I invite you to read the Falcon Shifter series. Visit my Candace Colt Website to find out where to buy them. Visit Nocturne Falls Universe to learn more about Kristen Painter’s series.

If you think Crealde had terms and conditions, wait till you meet Wishes next time!

(title apologies to Wm. Shakespeare)

Ryan Ford is the hero in my Nocturne Falls Universe paranormal novella, “The Falcon Finds His Mate.“ Oh. I should mention Ryan is a shape-shifting Peregrine falcon–one of the fastest birds on Earth.

Though the shape-shifters in my story are imaginary, falcons are real!

I’ve fallen in love with these creatures. Until I researched falcons for this story, I had no idea there were different members of this family.

In one scene, Ryan–in human form, is a contestant in a charity benefit for the local animal sanctuary and models with a North American Kestrel Falcon on his gloved hand.

Ryan chose the small and mighty Kestrel, because anything larger might frighten the unsuspecting humans in the audience. (Hey, it’s fiction–remember?)

Sometimes called a sparrow hawk, the adult Kestrel weighs between 5-6 ounces; the approximate size of a mourning dove or a robin. The female is slightly larger than the male.

Though their larger cousins like Ryan (the Peregrine Falcon shifter) are faster, these little ‘race cars of the sky’ hold their own. Long wings and tail allow them to maneuver and kite in the air, and fly at speeds of up to thirty-nine miles per hour.

This photo is an adult female. Note her rust-colored wings and back. Her tale bands are narrower than the male. Those distinctive ‘sideburns’ and ‘mustache’ are found in both the female and male. If you look closely at the nape of her neck, you’ll see two dark patches that resemble eyes. These are thought to be deterrents to a predator approaching from behind. These faux eyes appear on both the male and female. (Photo courtesy Chris Mayne)

Speaking of sight, the Kestrel has incredible vision. They see in the UV light range so they can track prey at night, though they do most of their hunting during the day. Their coloration is camouflage for their own survival and for confusing their prey. (Photo courtesy D. Allen Martin)

The adult male has slate-blue on the head and wings, but when perched, a black-spotted rusty mantle and scapulars predominate.

Depending on the gender, the adult wingspan can be up to 24 inches. The photo to the right is a male. Note the large dark band at the tip of his tale feathers.

Though they can spot prey from a perch, Kestrels prefer to hunt by hovering over the ground then swooping down when they see a tasty target, moving so fast their prey doesn’t see them coming.

Ready for your quiz?

Male or Female?

#1 = Female #2 = Female #3 = Male

(The above six photos courtesy Gerald Friesen)

The Kestrel’s yummy gourmet menu includes lizards, insects, snakes, rodents and small birds.

And eat like a bird? I wish! Kestrels eat up to 21% of their body weight each day. If I did that I’d have to consume…well, you don’t need to know everything!

They store food they don’t need in crevices in trees, utility pole boxes, rocks; wherever they can. Never know when you’ll need a quick bite when you’re out and about.

The bad news? The predator is also prey for larger hawks, crows, dogs and cats. The good news? This keeps the Kestrel on guard and alert. (Photo courtesy Linda Simmons)

Even though it’s small, the Kestrel is used in sport falconry, sometimes as the beginner bird. If captive for sport, the falconer must be mindful of the Kestrel’s weight as even a small weight loss (we’re talking ounces!) could be fatal.

During courting, the pair often gifts each other with food. The Kestrel mates for life and often returns to the same nesting site year after year.

By the way, the male chooses the nesting site, but the female has the final word before they move in. Umm…that sounds familiar, yes? (These two photos courtesy Chris Mayne)

Finally, all of us have a bad feather day now and again. But not everyone looks as darn cute as a Kestrel!! (Photo courtesy Gerald Friesen)