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Eagle swoops to ring lovebirds

A Table View Romeo enlisted the help of an obliging eagle when he popped the question to the love of his life yesterday.

Sean Conolly had the engagement ring cunningly concealed around the neck and under the feathers of an eagle at Spier wine estate. During a tour of the eagle enclosure, the eagle flew on to Natasha Mayhook's arm, and Connolly fell to one knee, asking her to marry him. Although quite stunned and nearly speechless, Mayhook managed to say yes.

Connolly said eagles had always meant a lot to him because they were so loyal. "They mate for life so I thought if would be an appropriate way to express my love." He said Mayhook was also a lover of wildlife and had a passion for birds. "But my biggest fear was that she would either say no or have her arm ripped off", he joked.

As for Wally, the Wahlberg eagle wo was in on the plot, she took the exercise in her stride. It wasn't her first time in the limelight, although probably the most romantic.

Tracy and Hank Chalmers, who run Eagle Encounters at Spier, said Wally had starred in a photo shoot recently opposite Mark Shuttleworth and had also played a starring role in the music video of British band Jamaroquai.

Article from the Saturday Weekend Argus