Peregrine

The peregrine (Falco peregrinus) is a large falcon that is increasingly being seen in towns and cities, where high buildings such as office blocks and churches provide nesting sites and prominences from which the birds can swoop on their prey.

In Great Britain, the peregrine’s natural habitat is uplands and rocky coasts in Scotland, Ireland, Wales and northern and southwest England. Peregrines will also winter in lowland areas in eastern and southern England and the English/Welsh borders.

Appearance

Peregrines are between 36 and 48 centimetres (14 to 19 inches) in length with females being noticeably larger than males. The wings are long and pointed and the tail relatively short. Upperparts are blue-grey and the wings dark blue. The white face, dark crown and black ‘moustache’ give the bird a ‘hooded’ look. The breast is spotted and the lower underparts barred.

Behaviour

When not nesting, peregrines are solitary birds. They prey mainly on other birds, but will also take animals such as rabbits. Regular bird victims include pigeons, starlings and blackbirds.

Peregrines have two hunting methods. They will chase prey and attack from below, or drop down from a great height with wings folded to increase their momentum.

Peregrines are normally silent, but nesting birds can be very noisy.

Breeding

Peregrines tend to use the same nesting sites year after year, and these are often passed down through many generations. They are usually on cliff ledges or high buildings. Pairs return to the site in February and male birds perform aerobatic courting displays that involve plunging and rolling manoeuvres. The male will sometimes drop food for the female to catch in flight.

Three or four eggs are laid in March or April and these are incubated mainly by the female. Young chicks are tended by the female while the male hunts and brings food to the nest, but both parent birds will hunt when the chicks are a bit older. Fledging takes place at around 40 days.

Conservation

Although the peregrine was traditionally a bird used in falconry, it has also suffered from persecution by gamekeepers and farmers. The use of agricultural pesticides has been a factor in the bird’s decline, as was the practice during World War II of shooting the birds to protect homing pigeons.

However, the species has had an encouraging recovery thanks to the banning of toxic pesticides. It has also maintained steady numbers in city environments, where it has performed a useful role in controlling feral pigeon populations.

© John Welford