Peregrine Falcon

(Falco peregrinus)
Amaia Demaray

Erica Carlson

Jeremy Kestler

Introduction

Conservation Efforts

The peregrine falcon is the largest falcon throughout

North America. Its aerodynamic morphology allows it
to fly roughly 65 mph, but at speeds >200 mph while
diving. Peregrine falcons hunt by either grabbing its
prey in the air or by diving and stunning the prey with
3
sheer force. In the wild, it has few natural predators.

The peregrine falcon was listed as an

endangered species from 1970 1999. 2

Peregrine falcons prefer to live near coastal areas, but

will also inhabit tundra, desert, or urban areas where
skyscrapers serve as nesting sites. Peregrine falcons
construct eyries, or scraped out depressions on high
cliffs. 3

The peregrine falcon population in California

was increasing in the 1990s due to fledgling
hacking in the northern and southern
populations. In 2014, it was determined that
the southern populations were increasing at a
5,
6
slower rate due to remnants of DDT.

The main cause of the population crash was

bioaccumulation of DDT, a pesticide commonly used
until the 1960s. As DDT built up through the trophic
levels, it led to reproductive failure in peregrine
3
falcons by causing thinner eggshells.

Human intervention has been the biggest

contribution to their population increase due to
reintroduction and provision of nesting sites.

Urban populations are acting as a source for

the reintroduction back into their historic
range. This dispersal is projected to take place
4
in 10-20 years.
Nesting sites are a limiting factor in peregrine
falcon growth. This is being remedied by
providing nesting sites in the form of trays or
1
boxes.

http://rfalconcam.com/imprints/wpcontent/uploads/2008/03/maincamera_20080303112602.jpg

Peregrine falcons often construct eyries on cliff faces

http://www.haliburtonlandtrust.ca/wpcontent/uploads/2012/04/13perpeck.jpg

Overall, peregrine falcon population trends are

increasing. 2

Literature Cited
1 Gahbauer, M. A., D. M. Bird, K. E. Clark, T. French, D. W. Brauning, and F. A. McMorris. 2015. Productivity, mortality, and management of urban peregrine falcons in northeastern North America. Journal of Wildlife Management 79:10-19.
2 Green, M., T. Swem, M. Morin, R. Mesta, M. Klee, K. Hollar, R. Hazlewood, P. Delphey, R. Currie, and M. Amaral. 2003. Monitoring results for the breeding American peregrine falcon (Falco peregrinus anatum), 2003. US Fish & Wildlife Service, Portland,
Oregon, USA.
3 The Nature Conservancy. 2015. Journey with Nature: Peregrine Falcon.
< http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northamerica/unitedstates/indiana/journeywithnature/peregrine-falcons.xml> Accessed 6 April 1015.
4 Wakamiya, S. M., and C. L. Roy. 2009. Use of monitoring data and population viability analysis to inform reintroduction decisions: peregrine falcons in the Midwestern United States. Biological Conservation 142:1767-1776.
5 Wootton, J. T., and D. A. Bell. 1992. A metapopulation model of the peregrine falcon in California: viability and management strategies. Ecological Applications 2:307-321.
6 Wootton, T., and D. A. Bell. 2014. Assessing predictions of population viability analysis: peregrine falcon populations in California. Ecological Applications 24:1251-1257.

Future Research Needs

Biologists suggest that population
monitoring is essential to determine
when and how management objective
should change.
Research needs to be done on the
variability in production of breeding
individuals. 1
Research should continue to be
conducted in urban areas to ensure that
the peregrine population increase
doesnt disrupt urban ecology.
Overall, monitoring of the species needs
to continue to observe trends.