Barbary Falcon
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| Falco pelegrinoides Temminck, 1829 |
The Barbary Falcon (Falco pelegrinoides) is a medium-sized falcon about the size of a crow. This bird of prey breeds in the Canary Islands and on the coasts of north Africa. It is mainly resident.
It is a bird of semi-desert and dry open hills. It typically lays its eggs in cliff ledge nests.
The Barbary Falcon is similar to the Peregrine Falcon, but smaller at 33-39cm length with a wingspan of 76-98cm. The female is larger than the male. It resembles its relative in general structure.
Adults have paler grey-blue upperparts than the Peregrine, and often have a buff wash to the barred underparts, whereas the larger species has a white background colour. The nape is rufous, but this is difficult to see.
Sexes are similar, apart from size, but the young birds have brown upperparts and streaked underparts. The streaking is lighter than in the juvenile Peregrine.
The call is a high-pitched "rek-rek-rek".
This species is often erroneously considered to be a subspecies of the slightly larger Peregrine Falcon, Falco peregrinus. Evidence of the differences between Peregrines and Barbaries includes that the Barbary breeds much earlier in the year, that they do not interbreed even though they may occupy tangent territories, and that their flight styles and ranges are considerably different. Other aspects include less blatant differences in plumage. While the untrained eye often sees several species of falcon as the same, an experience falconer or raptor biologist will recognize the distinctions immediately.
[edit] References
- BirdLife International (2004). Falco pelegrinoides. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
