This web page uses its own cookies and the third-party cookies to collect the information which help us make the service as good as possible. By no means is our intention to use it for gathering personal data.

Cookies policy

Birds

Birds

Common name Peregrine falcon
Scientific name Falco peregrinus
Type Cliff-nesting birds
Status Resident

Medium-sized bird of prey (about 51 cm or 20 in), sturdy, with short wings (wingspan about 130 cm or 4.5 ft), broad at the base and pointed. The females are larger than males. Slate grey back plumage and lighter colour in the belly area (pale, ocher or pink), with a pattern of thin dark horizontal bands. Short bill; nape and head covered by a dark cap and a distinctive wide and dark moustachial stripe. Yellow legs with bare tarsi.

Habitats

Rocky environments

Where it lives

Little demanding and adaptable. It usually chooses rocky gorges, cliffs and even buildings to nest. This raptor prefers nearby open spaces to hunt, but it is present in humid areas, pastures, crops, river areas, non-dense forest formations, and even urban spaces.

How it lives

Species resident all year round in Malaga. The province also hosts wintering individuals. The juveniles usually make short or dispersive migratory trips. La reproducción se inicia en febrero. A single annual laying of 3 to 5 eggs. It feeds exclusively on small and medium-sized birds that it catches in flight.

Where it can be seen in Malaga

It is a bird more frequent than it seems in the province. It is usually present in cities like Malaga City or Ronda and in most of the mountains of the province. In the Great Path it can be watched, for example, in stages 1, 6, 7, 9, 10, 13, 19, 21, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 32 and 33.

Curious facts

The hunting technique of the Peregrine Falcon includes steep plunges downwards from high altitude to surprise its prey. In these plunges it can reach speeds of more than 200 miles per hour. Its name (peregrin) refers to being a traveling or wandering hawk as it usually makes migratory movements (especially to the populations of northern Europe) or wanders in search of hunting territories.

Similar birds
Routes where it can be observed
Present
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Wintering Summer Resident Migration
Audios