Information About Falcons

hawk

Falcons are birds of prey that fly quickly during the day, and are distinguished by their long and pointed wings, and their length ranges between about 15-60 cm, depending on their type, but usually the female in falcons is the largest and boldest.

Different types of falcons are distributed all over the world and often build their nests in holes in trees or on natural cliffs.

Home of the falcons

Different types of hawks live almost all over the globe, with the exception of Antarctica and the far north of the Arctic Circle, and they are abundant in Africa and all over South America, and many different types of falcons are found in North and Central America, as well as Eurasia, Australia, and surrounding islands.

The habitats in which falcons prefer to live vary according to their species, but include the ecosystems in which different species of falcons live; mountains, forests, grasslands, wetlands, estuaries, and urban areas; like; Farms, gardens, parks, and busy cities.

Hawk food

The types of food preferred by falcons differ according to their types, but they depend on meat in their diet. Falcons are birds of prey , feeding on rodents, mice, small reptiles, rabbits, and small amphibians.

Falcons also eat small birds that they can easily catch, but they are not selective; They are just looking for food that is easy to catch without much effort.

Hawk behavior

Although some types of hawks gather around abundant food sources; However, they usually move and move alone, except for the breeding seasons, and in general, the routine behavior of falcons is to continue searching for prey to live on, and to rest for some time in the nests above the trees.

The behavior of falcons varies according to their type. Some of them go on a hunting trip during the early morning periods, and others hunt in the evening times. As for the migration of falcons, some species do not migrate, while others participate in partial or complete migrations, depending on the type and region.

Hawk breeding

Falcons reproduce with eggs; The female hawk lays about 4-5 eggs, and the color of these eggs is yellowish-white and spotted with a reddish-brown color. The female incubates them for about 28-35 days, and takes care of the young in the nest for up to 35 days.

Falcons are monogamous birds; That is, they continue to reproduce with the same partner, and preserve their nests to the maximum extent possible for the sake of reproduction, and the female bears full responsibility for incubating her chicks so that she can fly, while the male provides the prey to feed his family.

Types of hawks

There is a group of falcons that are slightly larger than average in size, and they are more beautiful than the rest of the species. They mainly feed on small birds, and they are distinguished by their dark gray plumage. Other species include the following:

peregrine falcons

They are large and powerful birds, gray in color with a little light or brown color on the upper side, and the peregrine falcon is one of the fastest birds in the world ; As it may reach a speed of more than 250 kilometers per hour when searching for prey, and it is one of the most widespread birds as well.

There are 19 species of peregrine falcon; There is therefore great variation in its size and colour, and it usually has a thin gray crown, and white, gray or reddish-brown underparts, with a varying amount of dark spots, and the skin of the peregrine’s face and legs is yellow to buff.

And the females of the peregrine falcon are approximately 20% larger than the males. The peregrine falcon communicates with each other in several ways, for example, it emits a constant, harsh and loud sound when exposed to intrusion or disturbance.

Peregrine falcon adaptation

The peregrine falcon is one of the most common bird species in the world, as it lives on every continent except Antarctica, and it may live in a wide range of habitats, including urban cities, tropics and deserts.

The peregrine falcon migrates long distances from winter areas to summer areas, and the peregrine falcon has adapted to live in many cities. It uses the edges of high buildings to build its nest, and some of them live in bridges and skyscrapers, and feed on pigeons and starlings that are abundant in cities.

chestnuts;

Chestnut hawks are the smallest of all species. They are reddish-brown in colour, with a small, black-and-white striped head and mustache-like markings on the sides. Males have thin, pointed blue and gray wings, while females have brown wings.

They are found in Canada and throughout the United States, but are the most common hawk in North America, flying at speeds of 35-63 km/h.

This species feeds mainly on terrestrial vertebrates and invertebrates of suitable size such as; rodents, reptiles, and insects, and also feeds on bats, small snakes, frogs, and earthworms, as well as larger birds of prey; Owls and other hawks.

Chestnut adaptation

Chestnuts are characterized by a strong sense of sight that enables them to see clearly for hunting during the day, and they are distinguished by their sharp claws that they use to capture and kill their prey, in addition to that they have a curved and pointed beak that they use to tear the prey to make it easier for them to eat it.

These falcons try to protect their surroundings by adopting aggressive behavior towards other birds of prey that approach their area