Mischief

 

In the south-eastern corner of Styria, atop an extinct volcano and within the walls of an impregnable castle, lives a griffon vulture named Mucki. A silly name for a vulture, you might say—but that’s really what he’s called, and he resides at the Riegersburg Bird of Prey Centre.

Mucki is an adventurous chap. Even as a youngster, he adored playful pranks and, above all, entertaining excursions. Ladies’ handbags are his great love—there might just be something tasty inside! This passion hasn’t faded with age, likely due to his association with the falconer’s feed bag.

But where on earth can one find unattended ladies’ handbags? Mucki knows. That’s why, during the summer tourist season, he loves to swoop down into the village of Riegersburg. In the beer garden of a local inn, there are plenty of tourists with tempting handbags. He usually lands right in the middle of a table: plates go flying, people leap up, women shriek, and the handbags are left—well, not exactly ownerless, but certainly unguarded.

What glorious chaos! Sadly, though, there’s never anything decent in those handbags—they’re simply not vulture-friendly. After the fruitless exercise of shredding ladies’ handbags, Mucki is left disappointed. And here’s the problem: he can’t fly back up. Vultures can’t take off from the ground; they need a perch with the right thermal lift. At first, Mucki would dutifully walk the long, steep path back home.

These days, he calls a taxi. He knows full well that the moment he lands, the innkeeper is already dashing to the phone to call the Bird of Prey Centre. Shortly after, Mucki’s people arrive, load him into the car, and take him home. And then there’s the insurance claim to file.

The local gendarmerie in Riegersburg are also well acquainted with Mucki—and have learned to be cautious. One day, Mucki decided not to wait for his taxi in the beer garden. Instead, he perched himself right in the middle of a road junction, like a traffic officer. Traffic came to a standstill, causing quite a jam in the height of summer.

The gendarmes arrived in their patrol car, sirens blaring and lights flashing, hoping to scare him off. Ha! That was just the sort of fun Mucki loved. He hopped straight onto the police car and set to work on the flashing light.

Mucki did a thorough job: the insurance had to cover not just damaged handbags and a flashing light, but also various other formerly mobile car parts. Since then, even the gendarmerie have left the collection service to the young folks at the Bird of Prey Centre!

Meanwhile, Mucki blinks contentedly into the distance, passes the time with pleasant little squabbles with the sea eagle, gives his all during the centre’s bird of prey displays for the tourists, and waits for new opportunities to prove his superiority. Lately, he’s taken a fancy to shoelaces. Dear audience: tuck in your feet and hide your laces!

Oh, and one more thing: after a few years, the Bird of Prey Centre—with somewhat shaken confidence—had to announce: Mucki is actually a lady vulture, even if she doesn’t behave very ladylike. Just vulture-like, but female nonetheless.

So, dear visitor, don’t miss the bird of prey show at Riegersburg Castle when you come to Styria! And mind your shoelaces...

Many, many years have passed since then, and Mucky is no longer with us. She died on April 7th, 2021. But those who knew her will never forget her—she was utterly hilarious and pure joy for the cautious observer. Mucky, you’re surely entertaining the entire animal heaven with your antics, and I still love you!