Post by Victoria on Jul 6, 2012 16:53:31 GMT -7
The Peregrine Falcon feeds almost exclusively on medium sized birds such as doves, waterfowl, songbirds, waders and pigeons In North America, prey has varied in size from hummingbirds to a Sandhill Crane (killed by a peregrine in a swoop).
Other than bats taken at night, it rarely hunts small mammals, but will on occasion take rats, voles, hares, mice and squirrels; the coastal populations of the large subspecies pealei feed almost exclusively on seabirds.
Insects and reptiles make up a small proportion of the diet, which varies greatly depending on what prey is available
Other common city birds are also taken regularly, such as Mourning Doves, Common Swifts, Northern Flickers, Common Starlings, American Robins and various corvids.
The Peregrine Falcon hunts at dawn and dusk, when prey are most active, but also nocturnally, particularly during migration periods when hunting at night may become prevalent. Nocturnal migrants taken by Peregrines include species as diverse as Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Black-necked Grebe, Virginia Rail and Common Quail.
It often hunts over open water, marshes, valleys, fields and tundra. It searches for prey either from a high perch or from the air.
Once prey is spotted, it begins its stoop, folding back the tail and wings, with feet tucked.
Prey is struck and captured in mid-air; the Peregrine Falcon strikes its prey with a clenched foot, stunning or killing it, then turns to catch it in mid-air.
The Peregrine will drop it to the ground and eat it there if it is too heavy to carry. Prey is plucked before consumption.
The Peregrine Falcon can have chicks at the end of the first year of age but in healthy populations they breed after two to three years of age. The pair mates for life and returns to the same nesting spot annually. The courtship flight includes a mix of aerial acrobatics, precise spirals, and steep dives.
The male passes prey it has caught to the female in mid-air. To make this possible, the female actually flies upside-down to receive the food from the male's talons. The Peregrine Falcon is territorial during the breeding season.
Within a breeding territory, a pair may have several nesting ledges; the number used by a pair can vary from one or two to seven in a 16 year period.
The pair defends the chosen nest site against other Peregrines, and often against ravens, herons, gulls and (in ground nest) mammals like foxes, wolverines, felids, bears and wolves. Both nests and (less frequently) adults are predated by larger-bodied raptorial birds like eagles, large owls, or Gyrfalcons.
Peregrines defending their nests have managed to kill raptors as large as Golden Eagles and Bald Eagles (which they normally avoid) that have come close to the nest.
The Peregrine Falcon nests in a scrape, normally on cliff edges or, today regularly in many parts of its range, on tall buildings or bridges. Cliff nests are generally located under an overhang, on ledges with vegetation, and south-facing sites are favored.[13] In some regions, large tree hollows are used for nesting.
The female chooses a nest site, where she scrapes a shallow hollow in the loose soil, sand, gravel, or dead vegetation in which to lay eggs. No nest materials are added. In remote, undisturbed areas such as the Arctic, steep slopes and even low rocks and mounds may be used as nest sites.
Mostly three to four eggs (range 1-5) are laid in the scrape. The eggs are white to buff with red or brown markings.
They are incubated for 29 to 33 days, mainly by the female.
The male also helps with the incubation of the eggs over day, but at night only the female incubates. The female generally lays another clutch if the eggs are lost early in the nesting season, though this is extremely rare in the Arctic owing to the short summer season. The average number of young found in nests is 2.5, and the average number that fledges is about 1.5.
After hatching, the eyases, or chicks, are covered with creamy-white down and have large feet. The male, which is called the "tiercel", brings food to the female and chicks, but the chicks are fed by the female, which stays at the nest and watches the young.
Chicks fledge 42 to 46 days after hatching, and remain dependent on their parents for up to two months.
They reach sexual maturity after one year.
Other than bats taken at night, it rarely hunts small mammals, but will on occasion take rats, voles, hares, mice and squirrels; the coastal populations of the large subspecies pealei feed almost exclusively on seabirds.
Insects and reptiles make up a small proportion of the diet, which varies greatly depending on what prey is available
Other common city birds are also taken regularly, such as Mourning Doves, Common Swifts, Northern Flickers, Common Starlings, American Robins and various corvids.
The Peregrine Falcon hunts at dawn and dusk, when prey are most active, but also nocturnally, particularly during migration periods when hunting at night may become prevalent. Nocturnal migrants taken by Peregrines include species as diverse as Yellow-billed Cuckoo, Black-necked Grebe, Virginia Rail and Common Quail.
It often hunts over open water, marshes, valleys, fields and tundra. It searches for prey either from a high perch or from the air.
Once prey is spotted, it begins its stoop, folding back the tail and wings, with feet tucked.
Prey is struck and captured in mid-air; the Peregrine Falcon strikes its prey with a clenched foot, stunning or killing it, then turns to catch it in mid-air.
The Peregrine will drop it to the ground and eat it there if it is too heavy to carry. Prey is plucked before consumption.
The Peregrine Falcon can have chicks at the end of the first year of age but in healthy populations they breed after two to three years of age. The pair mates for life and returns to the same nesting spot annually. The courtship flight includes a mix of aerial acrobatics, precise spirals, and steep dives.
The male passes prey it has caught to the female in mid-air. To make this possible, the female actually flies upside-down to receive the food from the male's talons. The Peregrine Falcon is territorial during the breeding season.
Within a breeding territory, a pair may have several nesting ledges; the number used by a pair can vary from one or two to seven in a 16 year period.
The pair defends the chosen nest site against other Peregrines, and often against ravens, herons, gulls and (in ground nest) mammals like foxes, wolverines, felids, bears and wolves. Both nests and (less frequently) adults are predated by larger-bodied raptorial birds like eagles, large owls, or Gyrfalcons.
Peregrines defending their nests have managed to kill raptors as large as Golden Eagles and Bald Eagles (which they normally avoid) that have come close to the nest.
The Peregrine Falcon nests in a scrape, normally on cliff edges or, today regularly in many parts of its range, on tall buildings or bridges. Cliff nests are generally located under an overhang, on ledges with vegetation, and south-facing sites are favored.[13] In some regions, large tree hollows are used for nesting.
The female chooses a nest site, where she scrapes a shallow hollow in the loose soil, sand, gravel, or dead vegetation in which to lay eggs. No nest materials are added. In remote, undisturbed areas such as the Arctic, steep slopes and even low rocks and mounds may be used as nest sites.
Mostly three to four eggs (range 1-5) are laid in the scrape. The eggs are white to buff with red or brown markings.
They are incubated for 29 to 33 days, mainly by the female.
The male also helps with the incubation of the eggs over day, but at night only the female incubates. The female generally lays another clutch if the eggs are lost early in the nesting season, though this is extremely rare in the Arctic owing to the short summer season. The average number of young found in nests is 2.5, and the average number that fledges is about 1.5.
After hatching, the eyases, or chicks, are covered with creamy-white down and have large feet. The male, which is called the "tiercel", brings food to the female and chicks, but the chicks are fed by the female, which stays at the nest and watches the young.
Chicks fledge 42 to 46 days after hatching, and remain dependent on their parents for up to two months.
They reach sexual maturity after one year.
