Peregrine Falcons in popular culture
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Peregrine Falcons in popular culture deals with the uses made of the image of the Peregrine Falcon.
- The Mediterranean Peregrine Falcon, was the annual rent required by Holy Roman Emperor Charles V when he donated the Island of Malta to the Knights Hospitaller in 1530. As the Maltese Falcon, it is the plot hook in Dashiell Hammett's famous book
- The Peregrine Falcon appears on the left hand side of the Coat of arms of the Isle of Man. The Peregrine is used owing to the historical importance of the bird in the Isle of Man. When Henry IV of England gave the Isle of Man to Sir John Stanley he made the condition that Sir John give two Peregrine Falcons to him, and furthermore to every future monarch of England on his or her Coronation Day. This tradition was carried out up to the Coronation of George IV in 1821.
- The Japanese word for Peregrine Falcon is Hayabusa, and has been applied to several items and characters in Japanese culture (See List).
- Hayabusa is a name for a Suzuki motorcycle. Until the release of Hayabusa, the Honda Blackbird XX was the fastest bike in the world. Suzuki decided to name the bigger, better, faster motorcycle Hayabusa, because they hunt Blackbirds.
- The air pressure from the Peregrine's bullet-like attack plunge might damage an ordinary bird’s lungs. It is thought that a series of baffles in a Peregrine’s nostrils slow the airspeed, enabling the bird to breathe while diving.[1] The inlet cone and intake ramps of supersonic jet engines serve the same purpose.
- A Peregrine Falcon, Lucy, was filmed in the movie The Falcon and the Snowman.
- A Peregrine Falcon is prominently featured on the Idaho quarter to be issued in 2007 as part of the United States Mint's 50 State Quarters program.[2]
- The Peregrine Falcon was declared Chicago's official city bird in 1999 after it began nesting on the city's skyscrapers.
- Author Tom Clancy lives in a house named "Peregrine Cliff," as does his fictional hero Jack Ryan.
- Robotic Peregrine Falcons have recently been placed in Liverpool city center in order to deter pigeons from congregating.
- Sam Gribley's bird, Frightful, is a peregrine falcon in the book My Side of the Mountain.
- In Star Trek, the United Federation of Planets' main starfighter is called the Peregrine.
- The Peregrine Falcon is the official mascot of the Kappa Delta Rho national fraternity
- In the animated series cartoon Beast Wars, the Peregrine Falcon is the beast form of Maximal Airazor.
- Peregrine falcons feature in two novels by Victor Canning, The Painted Tent in which a caged falcon is released and has to relearn hunting skills, and Birds of a Feather in which the central character, Sir Anthony Swale, tries to capture two nestlings for training.
- The Peregrine falcon is the preferred bird morph of Jake, leader of the Animorphs in the Young Adults series "Animorphs" by K.A. Applegate.
- In Tim Lahaye's Babylon Rising series, the main villain--Talon--often uses his peregrine falcons (with razors attached to their talons) to murder opponents; however, he is unsuccessful (and one of his birds is killed) when he tries this trick on the hero, Murphy.
