- Diving to kill their prey at over 100 miles per hour, peregrine falcons
are said to be the fastest birds on earth.
- Their name comes from the latin word pereginus (meaning traveller).
- Peregrine falcons are about the size and weight of a crow.
- Returns regularly to favourite nesting sites-one pair after another
has used the same spot near England since 1243
- Falcon can dive at over 300 km per hour when attacking.
- Peregrines are the best known of all the falcons due to their wide
range as well as their extraordinarily spectacular stooping ability.
- Falcons that take birds often hit them from out of the sun, which
makes it easier for the falcons to see, and consequently makes it nearly
impossible for the prey species to see them coming.
- When striking at great speed, the falcon may knuckle the prey, stunning
it, then circle rapidly back to take the falling bird in talons.
- Falcons have a system of baffles in the nostrils to enable them to
breathe during dives.
- Females are larger and more powerful than males.
- Adults have slate dark blue-gray wings and backs barred with black,
pale undersides, white faces with a black stripe on each cheek, and
large, dark eyes. Their wings are long and pointed.
- DDE (which is from the pesticide DDT) caused the peregrine falcon
populations to disappear in many parts of the world.
- Eating smaller birds that ingested food sprayed with DDT, the peregrines
accumulated this poison in their bodies, causing eggs with shells too
thin to survive during incubation.
- Although they have a high mortality rate, Peregrines have been known
to live as long as 15 years.
- The female does the majority of brooding of the nestlings. The young
become mobile in the nest at 28 days, and usually fledge within 40 days.
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