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Difference between revisions of "Peregrine Falcon" - BirdForum Opus

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'''Includes Cape Verde Peregrine Falcon'''
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[[Image:Peregrine with prey.jpg|thumb|550px|right|''F. p. peregrinus'' with prey<br />Photo &copy; by {{user|acorn|Colin Pass}}<br/ >[[UK]], 6 April 2013]]
 
;[[:Category:Falco|Falco]] peregrinus
 
;[[:Category:Falco|Falco]] peregrinus
−
[[Image:Peregrine_Falcon.jpg|thumb|550px|right|Photo by {{user|RMD|RMD}}<br/ >Photo taken: Nhulunbuy NT, [[Australia]]]]
+
'''Includes Barbary Falcon, Cape Verde Peregrine Falcon, and Shaheen Falcon'''
−
[[Image:d06_0778.jpg|thumb|400px|right|Photo by Nomdeploom.<br/ >Location: Santa Fe Nat'l Forest, New Mexico, USA.]]
 
 
==Identification==
 
==Identification==
−
L. 15–21 in
+
 
 +
A large, powerful falcon, 34-50 cm (13½-19¾ in) long, 80-120 cm wingspan, and 450-1,500 g weight.
 +
*Thick, black moustachial stripe and hood
 +
*Sides of neck white
 +
*Hooked blue/grey bill with yellow [[Topography#Heads|cere]]
 +
*Yellow eye-ring and feet
 +
'''Adult male''' slate grey to blackish above; buff barred darker below. Smaller; weight [350]-450-750 g.<br />
 +
'''Adult female''' similar plumage but can be browner. Larger; weight [600]-920-1500 g.<br />
 +
'''Juvenile''': dark brown above, streaked below; cere, eye ring and feet greyish
 +
====Variations====
 +
[[Image:Peregrine_Falcon.jpg|thumb|350px|right|''F. p. macropus''<br/>Photo &copy; by {{user|RMD|Richard Mc Donald}}<br/>Nhulunbuy [[Northern Territory]], [[Australia]], 8 March 2005]]
 +
Marked, in size, mantle shade (mid-grey to nearly black), and head pattern, particularly the width of the moustachial stripe; in general, high latitude subspecies are larger and paler overall, and low latitude birds small (following [[Dictionary_A-C#B|Bergmann's rule]]), while dry climate subspecies are pale, and humid climate subspecies darker, to nearly black above (following [[Dictionary_G-L#G|Gloger's rule]]). See '''Subspecies''' below for more details.
 
==Distribution==
 
==Distribution==
−
Almost worldwide. In [[North America]] breeds in [[Alaska]], northern and western [[Canada]] and western coastal [[Greenland]].  
+
[[Image:peregrine_falcon_2_alok.JPG|thumb|350px|right|Subspecies ''F. p. calidus''<br />Photo &copy; by {{user|aloktewari|Alok Tewari}}<br />Gurgaon Rural, Haryana, [[India]], 26 February 2018]]
 +
Almost worldwide - the most widely distributed bird of any, absent only from New Zealand and polar regions. See taxonomy, below, for more detail by subspecies.
 +
 
 +
Large areas of [[Europe]] and [[North America]] lost all or almost all of their Peregrine Falcons for a period in the late 20th century due to combinations of poisoning by persistent toxic pesticides like DDT and illegal persecution; following restrictions on persistent pesticides, reintroduction and natural recovery has allowed populations to recover in most areas, but illegal persecution remains a serious limiting factor in some areas, notably in upland [[Britain]].
 +
 
 +
Capture of birds for falconry use has also caused losses in some areas. Conversely, the adoption of tall buildings for nest sites has allowed Peregrine Falcons to expand into urban habitats, often in areas which lacked any natural nest sites.
 
==Taxonomy==
 
==Taxonomy==
−
17 races are recognised: In North America ''F. p. anatum'' breeds across much of the continent, ''pealei'' on the Pacific coast and ''tundrius'' in the far north. Race ''cassini'' breeds in southern South America. The nominate race ''peregrinus'' breeds over Europe and western Asia, ''calidus'' in Siberia and ''japonensis'' in eastern Asia. ''F. p. brookei'' breeds around the Mediterranean and ''peregrinator'' from India to southern China. The tropical African race is ''minor'', ''madens'' breeds on the Cape Verde Islands and ''radama'' in Madagascar and the Comoros. ''F. p. ernesti'' breeds in the Philippines, Indonesia and New Guinea, ''nesiotis'' in Vanuatu, the Loyalty Islands and New Caledonia, ''furuitii'' on Volcano Island, ''macropus'' in Australia and ''submelanogenys'' in south-west Australia.
+
''F. p. pelegrinoides'' (sometimes together with ''F. p. babylonicus'') has been separated as '''Barbary Falcon'''.
 +
====Subspecies====
 +
[[Image:Peregrine juv.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Juvenile ''F. p. anatum''<br/>Photo &copy; by {{user|CurtMorgan|Curt Morgan}}<br/ >Upstate [[New York]], [[USA]], 21 June 2009]]
 +
[[Image:Peregrino 17 copy.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Subspecies ''cassini''<br />Photo &copy; by {{user|Luis+R|Luis R}}<br />Parcela Araguaney. Santiago de Chile, [[Chile]], 9 January 2017]]
 +
19 subspecies are currently recognised<sup>[[#References|[2]]]</sup>:
 +
*''F. p. anatum''
 +
:*[[North America]] (south of tundra) to northern [[Mexico]]. Similar to nominate.
 +
*''F. p. tundrius''
 +
:*Arctic tundra of [[North America]] ([[Alaska]] to [[Greenland]]) Very large, pale.
 +
*''F. p. calidus''
 +
:*Tundra of [[Eurasia]] (Lapland to northeast Siberia). Very large, pale.
 +
*''F. p. pealei''
 +
:*Coastal western [[North America]] (Aleutian Islands to Washington). Large, dark.
 +
*''F. p. cassini''
 +
:*Western [[South America]] ([[Ecuador]] to Tierra del Fuego and [[Falkland Islands]]). Variable, some dark, others (formerly sometimes split as subspecies ''kreyenborgi'') much paler.
 +
*''F. p. japonensis''
 +
:*Northeast [[Siberia]] to Kamchatka Peninsula and [[Japan]].
 +
*''F. p. furuitii''
 +
:*On the Volcano Islands and Bonin Islands east of [[Japan]].
 +
*''F. p. peregrinus''
 +
:*Northern [[Eurasia]] (south of the tundra). Fairly large (male 580-750 g, female 920-1300 g); slate grey above, grey barred below with variable buff wash on breast.
 +
*''F. p. brookei''
 +
:*Mediterranean basin east to the Caucasus Mountains. Smaller than nominate (male 445 g, female 800-920 g); plumage similar but with slightly darker breast.
 +
*''F. p. pelegrinoides'' - '''Barbary Falcon'''
 +
:*[[Canary Islands]] and north [[Africa]] ([[Morocco]]) to west [[Iran]]. Small (male 330-400 g, female 500-850 g, only about half the weight of ''F. p. calidus''); pale, with narrower moustachial stripe, forecrown black, rear crown rusty red-brown, whitish breast weakly barred with brown bars, mantle mid to pale grey.
 +
*''F. p. babylonicus'' - '''Barbary Falcon'''
 +
:*Eastern [[Iran]] to [[Mongolia]]. Small; very pale, with weak moustachial stripe, forecrown grey, rear crown orangey-brown, whitish breast, and pale grey mantle.
 +
*''F. p. madens''
 +
:*[[Cape Verde Islands]].
 +
*''F. p. minor''
 +
:*Southernmost [[Morocco]] to [[Mauritania]] and [[Africa]] south of the Sahara.
 +
*''F. p. radama''
 +
:*[[Madagascar]] and the Comoro Islands.
 +
*''F. p. peregrinator'' - '''Shaheen Falcon'''
 +
:*[[Pakistan]], [[India]] and [[Sri Lanka]] to southeast [[China]]. Fairly small; very dark, nearly black above, rich orange-brown below.
 +
*''F. p. ernesti''
 +
:*Thai-Malay Peninsula, [[Philippines]], [[Greater Sundas]], [[New Guinea]], and [[Bismarck Archipelago]]; birds on the [[Solomon Islands]] are probably also this subspecies. Fairly small; very dark, nearly black above; extensive hood with very broad moustachial stripe joining rear crown, heavily barred blackish below.
 +
*''F. p. nesiotes''
 +
:*[[Vanuatu]] and [[New Caledonia]].
 +
*''F. p. macropus''
 +
:*[[Australia]] (except for southwestern part). Fairly small; extensive hood with very broad moustachial stripe joining rear crown; dark grey mantle, underparts barred black on buff.
 +
*''F. p. submelanogenys''
 +
:*Southwestern [[Australia]]. Included in ''F. p. macropus'' by some authorities, and very similar to it<sup>[[#References|[1]]]</sup>.
 +
 
 
==Habitat==
 
==Habitat==
−
Cliff-faces for breeding, hunts over cultivated land and grassland, marshes and wetlands, beaches and the sea. Also increasingly using urban areas to nest/breed on buildings.
+
[[Image:30264431257 8df3c2cf3c o.jpg|thumb|350px|right|Juvenile, subspecies ''ernesti''<br />Photo &copy; by {{user|SeeToh|SeeToh}}<br />Pulau Ubin, [[Singapore]],  9 October 2018]]
−
 
+
Cliff faces for breeding, hunts over cultivated land and grassland, marshes and wetlands, beaches and the sea. Also increasingly using urban areas to nest/breed on buildings.
 
==Behaviour==
 
==Behaviour==
 
====Flight====
 
====Flight====
−
Takes prey on ground and in the air using height advantage to gain speed. Often employs a high speed steep dive where reported speeds exceed 200kph. The impact of this dive can kill prey outright. Also pursues prey such as [[Feral Pigeon]]/[[Rock Dove]] in flight using speed from a dive and rapid jinking manoeuvering.
+
Takes prey mainly in the air, using height advantage to gain speed. Typically employs a high speed steep dive (stoop), where reported speeds exceed 200 km/h. Uses the long, 'elasticated' hind toe to hit the bird without injuring itself; the impact of this often kills the prey outright. Also pursues prey such as [[Feral Pigeon]]/[[Rock Dove]] in flight using speed from a dive and rapid jinking manoeuvering. Only rarely takes prey on the ground or on water.
−
 
 
 
====Diet====
 
====Diet====
−
The diet includes birds, such as doves, waterfowl and songbirds, occasionally hunt small mammals, including bats, rats, voles and rabbits. Insects and reptiles make up a relatively small proportion of their diet. Peregrine Falcons also eat their own chicks when starving.
+
The diet includes a wide range of birds, such as doves, waterfowl and songbirds, including birds as large as [[Great Black-backed Gull]] and [[Brant Goose]], up to 2 kg weight. Occasionally hunts small mammals, including bats, rats, voles and rabbits. Insects and reptiles make up a relatively small proportion of their diet. Exceptionally, Peregrine Falcons have been known to eat their own chicks when starving.
 
====Breeding====
 
====Breeding====
−
A scrape in the ground is made and 3-4 eggs are laid. The females incubate the eggs for 29-32 days. Chicks fledge 35-42 days after hatching. Is increasingly being reported using urban high-rise buildings and churches for nest/breeding sites to prey on [[Feral Pigeon]].
+
A scrape on a cliff ledge is made and 3-4 eggs are laid. The females incubate the eggs for 29-32 days. Chicks fledge 35-42 days after hatching. It is increasingly using urban high-rise buildings and churches for nest/breeding sites, to prey largely on [[Feral Pigeon]]s.
 +
====Movements====
 +
Most of the subspecies are resident, but ''F. p. calidus'' and ''F. p. tundrius'' migrate long distances south to avoid the arctic winters experienced in their breeding ranges.
 
====Vocalisation====
 
====Vocalisation====
−
<flashmp3>Falco peregrinus (song).mp3</flashmp3><br />
+
{{ Audio|Falco peregrinus (song).mp3 }}
−
''[[Media:Falco peregrinus (song).mp3|Listen in an external program]]''
+
 
 +
 
 +
==Gallery==
 +
Click images to see larger version
 +
<gallery>
 +
Image:peregrine_falcon_alok.JPG|'''Shaheen Falcon''' : Subspecies ''F. p. peregrinator''<br />Photo &copy; by {{user|aloktewari|Alok Tewari}}<br/ >Sultanpur Flats, Gurgaon, Haryana, [[India]], 24 November 2017
 +
Image:26000900002 42baf0e07a c.jpg|Subadult, subspecies ''japonensis''<br />Photo &copy; by {{user|SeeToh|SeeToh}}<br />Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, [[Singapore]], March 2016
 +
Image:BARBARYFALCON.jpg|Barbary Falcon (''F. p. pelegrinoides''), juvenile<br />Photo &copy; by {{user|RASHED|Rashed}}<br />[[Kuwait]], 25 October 2007
 +
 
 +
 
 +
</gallery>
 +
 
 +
==References==
 +
#{{Ref-GillDonskerRasmussen20V10.1}}#{{Ref-Clements6thAug19}}#{{Ref-HBWVol2}}#Fitter, R.S.R. & Richardson, R.A. (1966). Pocket Guide to British Birds. London: Collins.
 +
#White, C. M., N. J. Clum, T. J. Cade, and W. G. Hunt (2020). Peregrine Falcon (''Falco peregrinus''), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (S. M. Billerman, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.perfal.01
 +
#White, C.M., Christie, D.A., de Juana, E. & Marks, J.S. (2020). Peregrine Falcon (''Falco peregrinus''). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from https://www.hbw.com/node/53247 on 11 March 2020).
 +
#Global Raptor Information Network. 2020. Species account: Peregrine Falcon ''Falco peregrinus''. Downloaded from http://www.globalraptors.org on 11 Mar. 2020
 +
{{ref}}
  
 
==External Links==
 
==External Links==
−
{{GSearch|Falco+peregrinus}}
+
{{GSearch|Falco+peregrin*}}
−
<br />
+
 
−
{{Video|Peregrine_Falcon}}
 
  
 
[[Category:Birds]][[Category:Falco]][[Category:Bird Songs]][[Category:Videos]]
 
[[Category:Birds]][[Category:Falco]][[Category:Bird Songs]][[Category:Videos]]

Revision as of 13:15, 18 September 2021

F. p. peregrinus with prey
Photo © by Colin Pass
UK, 6 April 2013
Falco peregrinus

Includes Barbary Falcon, Cape Verde Peregrine Falcon, and Shaheen Falcon

Identification

A large, powerful falcon, 34-50 cm (13½-19¾ in) long, 80-120 cm wingspan, and 450-1,500 g weight.

  • Thick, black moustachial stripe and hood
  • Sides of neck white
  • Hooked blue/grey bill with yellow cere
  • Yellow eye-ring and feet

Adult male slate grey to blackish above; buff barred darker below. Smaller; weight [350]-450-750 g.
Adult female similar plumage but can be browner. Larger; weight [600]-920-1500 g.
Juvenile: dark brown above, streaked below; cere, eye ring and feet greyish

Variations

F. p. macropus
Photo © by Richard Mc Donald
Nhulunbuy Northern Territory, Australia, 8 March 2005

Marked, in size, mantle shade (mid-grey to nearly black), and head pattern, particularly the width of the moustachial stripe; in general, high latitude subspecies are larger and paler overall, and low latitude birds small (following Bergmann's rule), while dry climate subspecies are pale, and humid climate subspecies darker, to nearly black above (following Gloger's rule). See Subspecies below for more details.

Distribution

Subspecies F. p. calidus
Photo © by Alok Tewari
Gurgaon Rural, Haryana, India, 26 February 2018

Almost worldwide - the most widely distributed bird of any, absent only from New Zealand and polar regions. See taxonomy, below, for more detail by subspecies.

Large areas of Europe and North America lost all or almost all of their Peregrine Falcons for a period in the late 20th century due to combinations of poisoning by persistent toxic pesticides like DDT and illegal persecution; following restrictions on persistent pesticides, reintroduction and natural recovery has allowed populations to recover in most areas, but illegal persecution remains a serious limiting factor in some areas, notably in upland Britain.

Capture of birds for falconry use has also caused losses in some areas. Conversely, the adoption of tall buildings for nest sites has allowed Peregrine Falcons to expand into urban habitats, often in areas which lacked any natural nest sites.

Taxonomy

F. p. pelegrinoides (sometimes together with F. p. babylonicus) has been separated as Barbary Falcon.

Subspecies

Juvenile F. p. anatum
Photo © by Curt Morgan
Upstate New York, USA, 21 June 2009
Subspecies cassini
Photo © by Luis R
Parcela Araguaney. Santiago de Chile, Chile, 9 January 2017

19 subspecies are currently recognised[2]:

  • F. p. anatum
  • F. p. tundrius
  • F. p. calidus
  • Tundra of Eurasia (Lapland to northeast Siberia). Very large, pale.
  • F. p. pealei
  • Coastal western North America (Aleutian Islands to Washington). Large, dark.
  • F. p. cassini
  • F. p. japonensis
  • F. p. furuitii
  • On the Volcano Islands and Bonin Islands east of Japan.
  • F. p. peregrinus
  • Northern Eurasia (south of the tundra). Fairly large (male 580-750 g, female 920-1300 g); slate grey above, grey barred below with variable buff wash on breast.
  • F. p. brookei
  • Mediterranean basin east to the Caucasus Mountains. Smaller than nominate (male 445 g, female 800-920 g); plumage similar but with slightly darker breast.
  • F. p. pelegrinoides - Barbary Falcon
  • Canary Islands and north Africa (Morocco) to west Iran. Small (male 330-400 g, female 500-850 g, only about half the weight of F. p. calidus); pale, with narrower moustachial stripe, forecrown black, rear crown rusty red-brown, whitish breast weakly barred with brown bars, mantle mid to pale grey.
  • F. p. babylonicus - Barbary Falcon
  • Eastern Iran to Mongolia. Small; very pale, with weak moustachial stripe, forecrown grey, rear crown orangey-brown, whitish breast, and pale grey mantle.
  • F. p. madens
  • F. p. minor
  • F. p. radama
  • F. p. peregrinator - Shaheen Falcon
  • F. p. ernesti
  • F. p. nesiotes
  • F. p. macropus
  • Australia (except for southwestern part). Fairly small; extensive hood with very broad moustachial stripe joining rear crown; dark grey mantle, underparts barred black on buff.
  • F. p. submelanogenys
  • Southwestern Australia. Included in F. p. macropus by some authorities, and very similar to it[1].

Habitat

Juvenile, subspecies ernesti
Photo © by SeeToh
Pulau Ubin, Singapore, 9 October 2018

Cliff faces for breeding, hunts over cultivated land and grassland, marshes and wetlands, beaches and the sea. Also increasingly using urban areas to nest/breed on buildings.

Behaviour

Flight

Takes prey mainly in the air, using height advantage to gain speed. Typically employs a high speed steep dive (stoop), where reported speeds exceed 200 km/h. Uses the long, 'elasticated' hind toe to hit the bird without injuring itself; the impact of this often kills the prey outright. Also pursues prey such as Feral Pigeon/Rock Dove in flight using speed from a dive and rapid jinking manoeuvering. Only rarely takes prey on the ground or on water.

Diet

The diet includes a wide range of birds, such as doves, waterfowl and songbirds, including birds as large as Great Black-backed Gull and Brant Goose, up to 2 kg weight. Occasionally hunts small mammals, including bats, rats, voles and rabbits. Insects and reptiles make up a relatively small proportion of their diet. Exceptionally, Peregrine Falcons have been known to eat their own chicks when starving.

Breeding

A scrape on a cliff ledge is made and 3-4 eggs are laid. The females incubate the eggs for 29-32 days. Chicks fledge 35-42 days after hatching. It is increasingly using urban high-rise buildings and churches for nest/breeding sites, to prey largely on Feral Pigeons.

Movements

Most of the subspecies are resident, but F. p. calidus and F. p. tundrius migrate long distances south to avoid the arctic winters experienced in their breeding ranges.

Vocalisation


Gallery

Click images to see larger version

  • Shaheen Falcon : Subspecies F. p. peregrinator
    Photo © by Alok Tewari
    Sultanpur Flats, Gurgaon, Haryana, India, 24 November 2017

  • Subadult, subspecies japonensis
    Photo © by SeeToh
    Sungei Buloh Wetland Reserve, Singapore, March 2016

  • Barbary Falcon (F. p. pelegrinoides), juvenile
    Photo © by Rashed
    Kuwait, 25 October 2007

References

  1. Gill F, D Donsker & P Rasmussen (Eds). 2020. IOC World Bird List (v10.1). doi : 10.14344/IOC.ML.10.1. Available at http://www.worldbirdnames.org/
  2. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, S. M. Billerman, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2019. The eBird/Clements Checklist of Birds of the World: v2019. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
  3. Del Hoyo, J, A Elliot, and J Sargatal, eds. 1994. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Volume 2: New World Vultures to Guineafowl. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. ISBN 978-8487334153
  4. Fitter, R.S.R. & Richardson, R.A. (1966). Pocket Guide to British Birds. London: Collins.
  5. White, C. M., N. J. Clum, T. J. Cade, and W. G. Hunt (2020). Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus), version 1.0. In Birds of the World (S. M. Billerman, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.perfal.01
  6. White, C.M., Christie, D.A., de Juana, E. & Marks, J.S. (2020). Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from https://www.hbw.com/node/53247 on 11 March 2020).
  7. Global Raptor Information Network. 2020. Species account: Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus. Downloaded from http://www.globalraptors.org on 11 Mar. 2020

Recommended Citation

External Links

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