At the break of dawn, Emirati falconer, Ayesha Al Mansoori, drives deep into the Abu Dhabi desert with her falcons by her side.

The Emirati falconer along with her 9-year-old daughter, Osha, practice the traditional sport and teach their falcons how to hunt for animals, such as birds and rabbits.

The practice of falconry has been part of what is now the UAE for thousands of years, with Bedouins using the bird to hunt for food in the desert.

Mansoori learnt the sport from her father and has been training her daughter since she was just seven months old.

“I started practising this sport not out of choice, it was out of my love for my father and by accompanying him to the desert, that’s how I liked the sport and started,” she said.

On a mission to encourage more women to take on the hobby and to preserve it, Mansoori has given falconry lessons to hundreds of women and published a children’s book about it.

“We aspire for more women to become falconers by practising this sport and to have a sanctuary for falcons and a private centre for them (female falconers) so they can practise alone and learn about the importance of this sport to our heritage and lives,” Mansoori said.

At home, Mansouri keeps her falcons inside a ventilated space with desert sand and water. She keeps track of their diet, which includes frozen and fresh meat, and logs in their weight before every training.

Mansoori took part in numerous falconry competitions and festivals in the UAE and around the region.