RIYADH: Sales at the fourth Saudi Falcons Club auction reached almost SR1 million ($266,000) after two birds were sold for SR146,000, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday. The auction was launched at the club’s Malham headquarters near Riyadh on Oct. 1 and will continue until Nov. 15. Two falcons were featured on a local auction platform, attracting a large audience of enthusiasts and falconers from the Kingdom and beyond. They were both sold for SR73,000 each. Earlier, a peregrine falcon from Al-Awiqila in the Kingdom’s Northern Borders region stole the show at the auction, fetching a record sale price of SR250,000. Another shaheen falcon, this one from Al-Lith city in the Makkah region, sold for SR135,000. The event aims to promote the Kingdom’s falconry heritage and support related cultural and economic activities, organizers said, while offering opportunities to invest in a field that helps support the development of the national economy. During the auction, the club outlines investment in falconry in Saudi Arabia and the development of the sector, including regulations governing the buying and selling of birds. The Saudi Falcons Club offers accommodations and transportation for falcon owners, while the auction is broadcast live on television channels and the club’s social media platforms. During the club’s first auction, in 2020, 102 falcons were sold over 20 days, with total sales exceeding SR10 million. At the second auction, 95 falcons were sold for a total of SR8.3 million, and during the third, 81 birds sold for more than SR7 million. Meanwhile, the fifth International Saudi Falcons and Hunting Exhibition in Malham concluded on Saturday, drawing a significant crowd with a diverse array of attractions. The event included a pavilion for real gun and machine gun shooting experiences, alongside virtual reality shooting simulations. The pavilion allowed individuals aged 18 and above to engage in target shooting from a distance of 1.5 meters. Trained instructors guided participants, teaching them proper firearm handling and target aiming techniques. In the virtual reality shooting experience, amateurs engaged in shooting scenarios and simulated combat operations by targeting specific or multiple virtual targets on gaming devices. In addition to falconry and poetry, a traditional knitting pavilion featuring heritage textiles, accessories and handicrafts also proved popular.