7/28/2023 0 Comments American peregrin falcon habitat![]() Some birds of prey soar or hover in the sky and others have evolved short wings for quick, darting flights in forested country. Adult males are 15 to 18 inches long and weigh about 1 1/4 pounds, while the females are 18 to 21 inches long and weigh about 2 pounds. The falcon female (called the “falcon” by falconers) is larger than the male (called the “tiercel”). Their strong, hooked bill and powerful, taloned feet mark falcons as highly specialized predators. In flight they have quick, powerful wing strokes. Falcons are generally smaller and more streamlined than the hawks, with small heads, firm compact plumage, and long pointed wings, adaptations which allow them to fly at great speed. The falcon group, with four species in Alaska, is distinguished from other birds of prey by a tooth-like projectiion near the tip of the upper half of the bill. A North American name for the peregrine was “duck hawk” and the naturalist Audubon aptly called the bird the “great-footed hawk” but these names are no longer used. The peregrine was so named as a result of the lengthy migrations of some populations, and, surely, the ones which arrive here have come a long ways and will not remain long in this area. ![]() The name comes from the Latin adjective pereginus, meaning “coming from foreign parts” or “wanderer”. One of the many spectacular birds that migrates back to Alaska in the spring to nest and rear their young is the Peregrine falcon (Falco peregririus). Its hard to beat the inspiration of watching a falcon in flight.
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