Introductory
WILDLIFE SPECIES: Falco peregrinus | Peregrine Falcon 



ABBREVIATION : 
FAPE

COMMON NAMES : 
   peregrine falcon
   peregrine
   duck hawk
   bullet hawk


TAXONOMY : 
The currently accepted scientific name of peregrine falcon is Falco
peregrinus Tunstall.  There are 22 subspecies of peregrine falcon
worldwide.  North American infrataxa include [11,17,27]:

        Falco peregrinus ssp. anatum Bonaparte (peregrine falcon)
        Falco peregrinus ssp. pealei Ridgway (Pacific northwestern peregrine)
        Falco peregrinus ssp. tundrius (Arctic peregrine falcon)


ORDER : 
Falconiformes

CLASS : 
Bird

FEDERAL LEGAL STATUS : 
See OTHER STATUS

OTHER STATUS : 
Federal listing:  Falco p. ssp. anatum is listed as endangered.  F. p.
ssp.  tundrius is listed as threatened, and F. p. ssp. pealei has no
listing [34].

State listings:  Peregrine falcon is listed as endangered in Illinois
[28], South Dakota [30], Nebraska [33], Kansas [31], and Washington
[35].  F. p. ssp.  anatum and ssp. tundrius are listed as endangered in
Oklahoma [32], and and Florida lists F. p. ssp. tundrius as endangered
[29].

Canadian listings:  F. p. ssp. pealei is listed as vulnerable in British
Columbia.  Falco p. ssp. tundrius is listed as  vulnerable in New
Foundland, Northwest Territories, Quebec, and Yukon Territory [36].


COMPILED BY AND DATE : 
S. A. Snyder, April 1991


LAST REVISED BY AND DATE : 
NO-ENTRY


AUTHORSHIP AND CITATION : 
Snyder, S. A. 1991. Falco peregrinus. In: Remainder of Citation

WILDLIFE DISTRIBUTION AND OCCURRENCE
WILDLIFE SPECIES: Falco peregrinus | Peregrine Falcon 



GENERAL DISTRIBUTION : 
The migratory range of the three North American subspecies of peregrine
falcon extends from Greenland south through Canada and Alaska, into the
continental United States, through Mexico, and into South America.
Their breeding range extends from northern Alaska, northern MacKenzie,
Banks, Victoria, southern Melville, Somerset, the northern Baffin
Islands, and Labrador to Baja California, the Sonoran Coast, southern
Arizona, New Mexico, west and central Texas, and Colorado.  Occasionally
it breeds in the Sierra Madre of northern Mexico.  Formerly the
peregrine falcon bred in Kansas, Arkansas, northeastern Louisiana,
Tennessee, northern Alabama, and northwestern Georgia.  It is rare as a
breeder throughout much of continental North America, especially in the
East.  The peregrine falcon has been reestablished through introduction
programs in the eastern United States [2,4].

Falco p. ssp. pealei has a very limited range in coastal Alaska and
coastal British Columbia.  Falco p. ssp. tundrius is found in the
maritime provinces of Canada and in Greenland.  Falco p. spp. anatum is
found in Canada and the United States, including Alaska [2,11,17].


ECOSYSTEMS : 
FRES10 White-red-jack pine
FRES12 Longleaf-slash pine
FRES13 Loblolly-shortleaf pine
FRES15 Oak-hickory
FRES16 Oak-gum-cypress
FRES20 Douglas-fir
FRES21 Ponderosa pine
FRES22 Western white pine
FRES24 Hemlock-Sitka spruce
FRES25 Larch
FRES26 Lodgepole pine
FRES27 Redwood
FRES28 Western hardwoods
FRES29 Sagebrush
FRES30 Desert shrub
FRES32 Texas savanna
FRES33 Southwestern shrubsteppe
FRES34 Chaparral-mountain shrub
FRES35 Pinyon-juniper
FRES36 Mountain grasslands
FRES37 Mountain meadows
FRES39 Prairie
FRES40 Desert grasslands
FRES41 Wet grasslands
FRES42 Annual grasslands


STATES : 


    
AL
    
AK
	
AZ
    
CA
    
CO
    
CT
    
DE
    
FL
    
GA
    
HI


	
ID
    
IL
    
LA
    
ME
    
MD
    
MA
    
MI
    
MN
    
MS
    
MT


    
NV
    
NJ
    
NM
    
NY
    
NC
    
OH
    
OR
    
PA
    
RI
    
SC


    
TX
    
UT
    
VA
    
WA
    
WY
    
DC
 





    
AB
    
BC
    
MB
    
NB
    
NF
    
NT
    
NS
    
ON
    
PE
    
PQ


    
SK
    
YK
    

    

    

    

    

    

    

    







    
MEXICO
    




BLM PHYSIOGRAPHIC REGIONS : 
    1  Northern Pacific Border
    3  Southern Pacific Border
    4  Sierra Mountains
    5  Columbia Plateau
    6  Upper Basin and Range
    7  Lower Basin and Range
    8  Northern Rocky Mountains
    9  Middle Rocky Mountains
   10  Wyoming Basin
   11  Southern Rocky Mountains
   12  Colorado Plateau
   13  Rocky Mountain Piedmont
   14  Great Plains
   16  Upper Missouri Basin and Broken Lands


KUCHLER PLANT ASSOCIATIONS : 
   K001  Spruce - cedar - hemlock forest
   K006  Redwood forest
   K008  Lodgepole pine - subalpine forest
   K009  Pine - cypress forest
   K010  Ponderosa shrub forest
   K011  Western ponderosa forest
   K012  Douglas-fir forest
   K016  Eastern ponderosa forest
   K018  Pine - Douglas-fir forest
   K019  Arizona pine forest
   K022  Great Basin pine forest
   K024  Juniper steppe woodland
   K027  Mesquite bosque
   K029  California mixed evergreen forest
   K030  California oakwoods
   K035  Coastal sagebrush
   K036  Mosaic of K030 and K035
   K038  Great Basin sagebrush
   K047  Fescue - oatgrass
   K048  California steppe
   K049  Tule marshes
   K050  Fescue - wheatgrass
   K055  Sagebrush steppe
   K056  Wheatgrass - needlegrass shrubsteppe
   K057  Galleta - threeawn shrubsteppe
   K058  Grama - tobosa shrubsteppe
   K059  Trans-Pecos shrub savanna
   K060  Mesquite savanna
   K061  Mesquite - acacia savanna
   K062  Mesquite - live oak savanna
   K063  Foothills prairie
   K064  Grama - needlegrass - wheatgrass
   K066  Wheatgrass - needlegrass
   K072  Sea oats prairie
   K073  Northern cordgrass prairie
   K077  Bluestem - sacahuista prairie
   K078  Southern cordgrass prairie
   K079  Palmetto prairie
   K080  Marl - everglades
   K084  Cross Timbers
   K088  Fayette prairie
   K090  Live oak - sea oats
   K091  Cypress savanna
   K092  Everglades
   K094  Conifer bog
   K095  Great Lakes pine forest
   K105  Mangrove
   K112  Southern mixed forest
   K113  Southern floodplain forest
   K114  Pocosin
   K115  Sand pine scrub
   K116  Subtropical pine forest


SAF COVER TYPES : 
     1  Jack pine
    15  Red pine
    16  Aspen
    18  Paper birch
    19  Gray birch - red maple
    21  Eastern white pine
    30  Red spruce - yellow birch
    32  Red spruce
    35  Paper birch - red spruce - balsam fir
    38  Tamarack
    61  River birch - sycamore
    63  Cottonwood
    68  Mesquite
    69  Sand pine
    70  Longleaf pine
    71  Longleaf pine - scrub oak
    73  Southern redcedar
    74  Cabbage palmetto
    75  Shortleaf pine
    78  Virginia pine - oak
    79  Virginia pine
    80  Loblolly pine - shortleaf pine
    81  Loblolly pine
    82  Loblolly pine - hardwood
    83  Longleaf pine - slash pine
    84  Slash pine
    85  Slash pine - hardwood
    87  Sweet gum - yellow poplar
    88  Willow oak - water oak - diamondleaf oak
    89  Live oak
    91  Swamp chestnut oak - cherrybark oak
    92  Sweetgum - willow oak
    94  Sycamore - sweetgum - American elm
    96  Overcup oak - water hickory
    97  Atlantic white-cedar
    98  Pond pine
   100  Pondcypress
   101  Baldcypress
   102  Baldcypress - tupelo
   103  Water tupelo - swamp tupelo
   104  Sweetbay - swamp tupelo - redbay
   105  Tropical hardwoods
   106  Mangrove
   107  White spruce
   111  South Florida slash pine
   202  White spruce - paper birch
   203  Balsam poplar
   204  Black spruce
   210  Interior Douglas-fir
   217  Aspen
   218  Lodgepole pine
   220  Rocky Mountain juniper
   221  Red alder
   222  Black cottonwood - willow
   223  Sitka spruce
   224  Western hemlock
   225  Western hemlock - Sitka spruce
   226  Coastal true fir - hemlock
   227  Western redcedar - western hemlock
   228  Western redcedar
   229  Pacific Douglas-fir
   230  Douglas-fir - western hemlock
   232  Redwood
   233  Oregon white oak
   234  Douglas-fir - tanoak - Pacific madrone
   235  Cottonwood - willow
   237  Interior ponderosa pine
   238  Western juniper
   241  Western live oak
   242  Mesquite
   244  Pacific ponderosa pine - Douglas-fir
   245  Pacific ponderosa pine
   246  California black oak
   247  Jeffrey pine
   248  Knobcone pine
   251  White spruce - aspen
   252  Paper birch
   253  Black spruce - white spruce
   254  Black spruce - paper birch
   255  California coast live oak


SRM (RANGELAND) COVER TYPES : 
NO-ENTRY


PLANT COMMUNITIES : 
Peregrine falcons inhabit tundra, moorland, steppe, marshland, mountain
meadows, open forests, and seacoasts.  They frequent both the Atlantic
and Pacific coasts from Greenland through South America.  Inland,
peregrines inhabit open plant communities, such as grasslands and
meadows, usually near rivers or lakes.  They are found in the coniferous
forests of the West and the mixed deciduous and coniferous forests of
the East and Southeast.  In the Southwest peregrine falcons inhabit
savannas and shrubsteppes.  Throughout their range they inhabit the less
dense forests, usually near large openings, and can be found along the
borders of dense forests near water.  Peregrine falcons are also found
in some urban centers of the United States and Canada.  Cities where
peregrine falcons have been introduced include Chicago, Milwaukee,
Boston, New York, Minneapolis, St. Paul, Norfolk, Detroit, Baltimore,
and Philadelphia.  [2,4,5,7,11].


REFERENCES : 
NO-ENTRY

BIOLOGICAL DATA AND HABITAT REQUIREMENTS
WILDLIFE SPECIES: Falco peregrinus | Peregrine Falcon 



TIMING OF MAJOR LIFE HISTORY EVENTS : 
Courtship - begins in autumn
Breeding - March through August, peaking in May or June
Reproductive Age - 1 year, although many do not produce until their
                   2nd year for various reasons  
Clutch Size - two to five eggs; not all eggs hatch and not all 
              hatchlings fledge 
Incubation - 28 to 32 days 
Fledge - 35 to 42 days after hatching 
Lifespan - 20 years
Migration Period - spring and autumn 
[7,12,19]


PREFERRED HABITAT : 
Peregrine falcons prefer a variety of open habitats near nesting cliffs
or mountains.  They usually inhabit areas near water, such as lakes,
rivers, or oceans [7].  They can be found from sea level to 10,000
feet (0-3,050 m) [11].


COVER REQUIREMENTS : 
Peregrine falcons most frequently nest on ledges of high cliffs within 1
or 2 miles (2 or 3 km) of water [11].  Nest sites are often used for
several years.  They tend to choose overhanging cliffs with loose soil,
sand, dead vegetation, or gravel, in which they can scrape a depression
for their eggs [18].  They occasionally nest in trees.  In British
Columbia, Campbell and others [6] found peregrine falcons nesting in
abandoned bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) nests in Sitka spruce
(Picea sitchensis) trees.  In the Great Plains, they formerly nested on
cliffs near rivers and lakes, on low dikes in marshes and mudbanks, and
in large trees [15].


FOOD HABITS : 
Peregrine falcons primarily eat birds.  Prey species include, but are
not limited to, swallows (Hirundinidae), pigeons and doves (Columbidae),
and various ducks, shorebirds, and waders [7,11].  Along the Pacific
Coast of North America, peregrines feed on auklets and murrelets
(Alcidae), and petrels (Hydrobatidae).  Greiman [10] reported that
peregrine diets included tree and ground squirrels (Sciuridae),
rabbits (Leporidae), various other small mammals, and passerine birds.
In cities peregrines prey on pigeons and starlings (Sturnus vulgaris)
[5].


PREDATORS : 
The peregrine falcon's most destructive predator is man.  In the past
falconers robbed nests of eggs, which has led to the peregrine falcon's
decline [18,20].  Amadon [1] reported that red fox (Vulpes vulpes) or
wolverine (Gulo luscus) could possibly prey on eggs and that
great-horned owl (Bubo virginianus) may prey on adults.


MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS : 
The deadly effects of chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticides on peregrine
falcon populations are widely documented in the literature [14,16].
These pesticides reduce eggshell thickness, thereby causing the eggs to
break during incubation.  Although these pesticides are banned in the
United States and Canada, Mexico and some Central and South American
countries still use them.  Because peregrine falcons migrate, they are
affected by these pesticides.  However, the peregrine falcon has made a
dramatic comeback in the past decade [14,16].


REFERENCES : 
NO-ENTRY

FIRE EFFECTS AND USE
WILDLIFE SPECIES: Falco peregrinus | Peregrine Falcon 



DIRECT FIRE EFFECTS ON ANIMALS : 
Nichols and Menke [23] reported that fires near nesting cliffs could disturb
peregrine young or nesting pairs.  No other direct fire effects on
peregrine falcon have been noted.


HABITAT RELATED FIRE EFFECTS : 
The effect of fire on peregrine falcon habitat is best defined by how it
affects their primary prey, other bird species.  The California
Department of Forestry [23] concluded that peregrine falcons would
benefit by chaparral burning if it resulted in an increase of other
birds.  Studies conducted on chaparral burning concluded that abundant
food was available to raptors immediately following fire because of the
vulnerability of prey species due to a cover reduction [21].  Bird
species richness and diversity increase in the first few years following
fire in chaparral communities [25]. Taylor and Barmore [24] reported
that following fire in Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks,
air-soaring bird species were present by the second year and firmly
established by the fifth year. (Peregrine falcons were not included on
their species inventory list.)  However, as the canopy closed (after 40
years), these species began to drop out and were replaced by other, but
fewer, species.  Total bird biomass here was at least 70 percent greater
between 5 and 29 years following fire than it was after 40 years.  They
also concluded that canopy closure affected avifauna more than fire did.


FIRE USE : 
In California, Longhurst [22] reported a greater diversity of bird
species in young stands of chaparral regrowth (2-3 years old) or in
chaparral interspersed with grassy openings than in stands that were
older than 5 years.  Frequent burning creates a mosaic of habitats and
maintains abundant prey for peregrine falcons.  Because peregrine
falcons require open areas for hunting, fires that create these open
areas would probably be beneficial, provided burning led to an increase
of prey species.


REFERENCES : 
NO-ENTRY

References for species: Falco peregrinus

1. Amadon, Dean. 1969. Predation, shooting, and other factors. In: Hickey, Joseph J., ed. Peregrine falcon populations: their biology and decline. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press: 491-495. [13721]

2. Donohoe, Robert W. 1974. American hornbeam Carpinus caroliniana Walt. In: Gill, John D.; Healy, William M., eds. Shrubs and vines for northeastern wildlife. Gen. Tech. Rep. NE-9. Upper Darby, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Forest Experiment Station: 86-88. [13714]

3. Bernard, Stephen R.; Brown, Kenneth F. 1977. Distribution of mammals, reptiles, and amphibians by BLM physiographic regions and A.W. Kuchler's associations for the eleven western states. Tech. Note 301. Denver, CO: U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management. 169 p. [434]

4. Bull, John; Farrand, John, Jr. 1988. The Audubon Society field guide to North American birds. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. 784 p. [13716]

5. Cade, Tom J.; Bird, David M. 1990. Peregrine falcon, Falco peregrinus, nesting in an urban environment: a review. Canadian Field-Naturalist. 104(2): 209-218. [13718]

6. Campbell, R. Wayne; Paul, Marilyn A.; Rodway, Michael S.; Carter, Harry R. 1978. Tree-nesting peregrine falcons in British Columbia. The Condor. 79(4): 500-501. [13724]

7. DuBois, Kristi; Becker, Dale; Thornbrugh, Joe. 1987. Identification of Montana's birds of prey. Montana Outdoors. 18(6): 11-31. [3606]

8. Eyre, F. H., ed. 1980. Forest cover types of the United States and Canada. Washington, DC: Society of American Foresters. 148 p. [905]

9. Garrison, George A.; Bjugstad, Ardell J.; Duncan, Don A.; [and others]. 1977. Vegetation and environmental features of forest and range ecosystems. Agric. Handb. 475. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. 68 p. [998]

10. Greiman, Harley L. 1975. Nesting observations of peregrine falcons (Falco peregrinus annatum), Los Padres National Forest, California. Goleta, CA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Los Padres NationalForest, Santa Lucia Ranger District. 41 p. [19360]

11. Herman, Margaret; Willard, E. Earl. 1978. Peregrine falcon and its habitat. Missoula, MT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, National Forest System Cooperative Forestry, Forestry Research, Region 1. 23 p. [13730]

12. Hickey, Joseph J.; Anderson, Daniel W. 1969. The peregrine falcon: life history and population literature. In: Hickey, Joseph J., ed. Peregrine falcon populations: their biology and decline. Madison, WI: University of Wisconsin Press: 3-42. [13722]

13. Kuchler, A. W. 1964. Manual to accompany the map of potential vegetation of the conterminous United States. Special Publication No. 36. New York: American Geographical Society. 77 p. [1384]

14. Murphy, Julia E. 1990. The 1985-1986 Canadian peregrine falcon, Falco peregrinus, survey. Canadian Field-Naturalist. 104(2): 182-192. [13717]

15. Nemec, Kathryn. 1984. American peregrine falcon, arctic peregrine falcon. In: Henderson, Robert F., ed. Guidelines for increasing wildlife on farms and ranches. Manhattan, KS: Kansas State University Press: 241c-243c. [13720]

16. Peakall, David B. 1990. Prospects for the peregrine falcon, Falco peregrinus, in the nineties. Canadian Field-Naturalist. 104(2): 168-173. [13715]

17. Peterson, Roger Tory. 1990. A field guide to western birds. 2 ed. The Peterson Field Guide Series No. 2. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin. 432 p. [13712]

18. Ratcliff, Derek. 1980. The peregrine falcon. Vermillion, SD: Buteo Books. 416 p. [13713]

19. Verner, Jared; Boss, Allan S., tech. coords. 1980. California wildlife and their habitats: western Sierra Nevada. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-37. Berkeley, CA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Forest and Range Experiment Station. 439 p. [10237]

20. Zimmerman, David R. 1972. The peregrine, America's most endangered falcon. National Parks and Conservation Magazine. 46(9): 4-9. [13719]

21. Lawrence, George E. 1966. Ecology of vertebrate animals in relation to chaparral fire in the Sierra Nevada foothills. Ecology. 47(2): 276-291. [26766]

22. Longhurst, William M. 1978. Responses of bird and mammal populations to fire in chaparral. California Agriculture. 32(10): 9-12. [7639]

23. Nichols, R.; Menke, J. 1984. Effects of chaparral shrubland fire on terrestrial wildlife. In: DeVries, Johannes J., ed. Shrublands in California: literature review and research needed for management. Contribution No. 191. Davis, CA: University of California, Water Resources Center: 74-97. [5706]

24. Taylor, Dale L.; Barmore, William J., Jr. 1980. Post-fire succession of avifauna in coniferous forests of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks, Wyoming. In: DeGraaf, Richard M., technical coordinator. Management of western forests and grasslands for nongame birds: Workshop proceedings; 1980 February 11-14; Salt Lake City, UT. Gen. Tech. Rep. INT-86. Ogden, UT: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station: 130-145. [17902]

25. Wirtz, W. O., II. 1982. Postfire community structure of birds and rodents in southern California chaparral. In: Conrad, C. Eugene; Oechel, Walter C., technical coordinators. Proceedings of the symposium on dynamics and management of Mediterranean-type ecosystems; 1981 June 22-26; San Diego, CA. Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-58. Berkeley, CA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Forest and Range Experiment Station: 241-246. [6025]

26. Ambrose, Skip; Ulvi, Steve. 1990. Peregrine falcon research in the Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve, Alaska. Park Science. 10(4): 18-20. [14464]

27. Donohoe, Robert W. 1974. American hornbeam Carpinus caroliniana Walt. In: Gill, John D.; Healy, William M., eds. Shrubs and vines for northeastern wildlife. Gen. Tech. Rep. NE-9. Upper Darby, PA: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Northeastern Forest Experiment Station: 86-88. [13714]

28. Herkert, J. R., ed. 1992. Endangered and threatened species of Illinois: status and distribution. Volume 2--Animals. Springfield, IL: Illinois Endangered Species Protection Board. 142 p. [23799]

29. Wood, Don A., compiler. 1994. Official lists of endangered & potentially endangered fauna and flora in Florida. Tallahassee, FL: Florida Game and Fresh Water Fish Commission. 22 p. [24196]

30. South Dakota Department of Game, Fish and Parks. 1994. Fragile legacy: Endangered, threatened and rare animals of South Dakota. Pierre, SD: South Dakota Department of Game, Fish, and Parks, Wildlife Division. 55 p. [24341]

31. Clark, F. Bryan. 1976. The central hardwood forest. In: Fralish, James S.; Weaver, George T.; Schlesinger, Richard C., eds. Central hardwood forest conference: Proceeding; 1976 October 17-19; Carbondale, IL. [Place of publication unknown]. [Publisher unknown]. 1-8. [24372]

32. Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation, Nongame Wildlife Program. [n.d.]. Oklahoma's endangered species. Oklahoma City, OK. [Pamphlet]. [24375]

33. Wingfield, Greg. 1992. Nebraska's vanishing species. Lincoln, NE: Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, Wildlife Division, [Nebraskaland Magazine]. 15 p. [24344]

34. U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service. 1994. Endangered and threatened wildlife and plants. 50 CFR 17.11 & 17.12. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service. 42 p. [24413]

35. Washington Department of Wildlife. 1994. Species of special concern in Washington - state and federal status. Olympia, WA: Washington Department of Wildlife. 41 p. [25414]

36. Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. 1992. Canadian species at risk. Ottawa, ON. 10 p. [26183]

Related categories for Wildlife Species: Falco peregrinus | Peregrine Falcon