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Falco fasciinucha

[edit] Identification

[edit] Distribution

Sub-Saharan Africa: Discontinuous range in eastern and southern Africa breeding in southern Ethiopia, central Kenya and northern Tanzania and further south breeds in southern Zambia, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. Resident. Rare over most of range.

A pair of Taita Falcons has been breeding at the Strijdom tunnel in the Limpopo province, South Africa. This is the only known nest in South Africa. A few birds have been seen on occasion in the same mountain range (Drakensberg mountains) in the Limpopo province by a BirdLife S.A. survey team in 2007.

[edit] Taxonomy

Monotypic.

[edit] Habitat

Hills and mountains with cliffs, usually at 2,000-4,000 m. The best known locality is the Zambezi Gorge on the Zambia/Zimbabwe border.

[edit] Status

Classified as Near Threatened in the 2008 IUCN Red List (BirdLife International, 2008) as it is thought to have a very small population.

[edit] Behaviour

Nest in a burrow in a cliff about 1 m in depth. Hunts early in the morning out of breeding season or any time during the day while rearing young.

[edit] References

BirdLife International (2008) Species factsheet: Falco fasciinucha. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 21 May 2008.

[edit] External Links

[1]Birding Limpopo