Mexico City - During a visit to Mexico last April, French President Francois Hollande had the opportunity to see cadets of the Heroic Military School of the Defense Secretariat demonstrate their falconry skills.

The stateliness of the birds of prey and the dexterity with which the cadets handled them impressed Hollande, so he sent a request to President Enrique Peña Nieto asking if the Mexican army cadets and their raptors could visit France.

As a result, the cadets will take three golden eagles, two Harris hawks and one red-tailed hawk with them to France for this year's July 14 Bastille Day celebrations.

In France, July 14 commemorates the storming of Bastille, a prison in Paris, which initiated the French Revolution in 1789. The day is celebrated with traditional military parades, and this year, the French forces will be joined by the Heroic Military School cadets and their birds, as well as members of Mexico's Air Force and Navy. Festivals and fireworks also fill the day's activities.

After being rescued by the Secretariat of the Environment, the birds were donated to the military school's handling unit, as it is the only institution in Mexico dedicated to this kind of work. The cadets are tasked with preparing the birds of prey, physically and behaviorally, for reintegration into their natural habitat.