This Might Be the Most Awesome 13-Year-Old Girl on the Planet

Ready for your daily dose of breathtaking wonder? Allow us to introduce Ashol-Pan, a 13-year-old eagle huntress in Mongolia, and perhaps the world's only female apprentice falconer. Ashol-Pan belongs to a Mongolian tribe known as the Kazakhs. Inhabitants of the Altai mountain range on the west side of the country are the only people that use golden eagles to hunt.
Apprentices, generally Kazakh boys, start honing their craft at the tender age of 13, learning how to use the magnificent creatures to hunt foxes, hares and other game, though the massive birds weigh heavily on their still-developing arms. Ashol-Pan, as the daughter of a particularly celebrated Kazakh hunter, has been gifted with a rare opportunity and astonishing natural talent, according to Asher Svidensky, photographer and travel writer.
It's not an easy profession, as one could well imagine. Hunts occur in winter, when temperatures reach as low as negative 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Prior to the hunt, falconers spend arduous days trekking uphill on horseback to achieve the necessary vantage point. Plus, there's the matter of the eagle's free will: "You don't really control the eagle. You can try and make her hunt an animal-and then it's a matter of nature. What will the eagle do? Will she make it? How will you get her back afterwards?" says Svidensky.
To Svidensky, Ashol-Pan represents a new era in Mongolian history. For over two thousand years, the art has been reserved for males. But Ashol-Pan is not intimidated: "To see her with the eagle was amazing," Svidensky attests. "She was a lot more comfortable with it, a lot more powerful with it and a lot more at ease with it."
Ashol-Pan is part of a generation that will redefine Mongolian traditions and culture, Svidensky holds. Leading by example, she serves as proof that male-dominated practices are ripe for reform. (Who runs the world? Girls.)
For more incredible photos of Ashol-Pan and her feathered compatriot, head over to BBC News.
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