![]() If a bird of prey comes into your garden and takes a bird from your feeders it will almost certainly be a sparrowhawk. I would also recommend watching a few videos online of peregrines in flight. Juveniles have a streaked breast and belly whereas an adults is barred and females are much larger than the males. Different peregrines have slightly different moustaches so they can be individually identified. Peregrines have a dark moustache which can be seen even with the naked eye. Then you could potentially spot three – a pair defending their territory against an intruder and this could get quite vocal. At this time of year you would only usually see one at a time unless you were near a nest. ![]() Peregrines are mostly silent away from their breeding site. The male and female have similar markings and plumage but, as with many birds of prey, the peregrine falcon displays marked sexual dimorphism in size, with the. It is also worth noting that sparrowhawks also stoop but more vertically compared to a peregrine which stoops more diagonally. When they spot their prey, the magic happens – wing action becomes more determined and speed suddenly increases until they stoop, dropping like a bullet onto their unsuspecting victim. They have an active flight with fairly quick, shallow wing beats and a moderate speed. Pointed wings are slightly flexed and with a medium length tail compared to other bird of prey species. They are the strongest of falcons in relation to their size with a bulky body and ‘heavy chest’. For anyone who isn’t sure about how to identify peregrine falcons in flight, I thought I would give a short overview. ![]() Last week I asked if you could all keep an eye out for peregrine falcons, and being the fastest creature on the planet you may find that a tall order! However they don’t fly over 200mph all the time, only when they are stooping to catch their prey.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |