Facts about Falcon
Some sources give the etymology as deriving from the fact that a male falcon is approximately one-third smaller than the female.
The term falcon also is applied to all members of Falconidae, the falcon family.
Falcon is the common name for birds of prey comprising the genus Falco in the family Falconidae, characterized by a short, curved, notched beak, and thin, long, tapered and powerful wings adapted for swift flight.
Initial studies of mtDNA cytochrome b sequence data suggested that the hierofalcons are basal among living falcons (eg., Helbig et al.
The larger Falco species, such as the peregrine falcon, feed on mid-sized birds and terrestrial vertebrates, taking prey of up to 5-pound sage grouse size.
The kestrels are usually small and stocky falcons and feed chiefly on terrestrial vertebrates and invertebrates of appropriate size, such as rodents, reptiles, or insects.
Falcons provide important ecological values in helping to keep the balance of nature by controlling the number of prey species, such as rodents and reptiles.
Technically, however, a falcon's wings are shaped more like a scythe than a sickle.
A falcon chick that is still in its downy stage, especially one reared for falconry, is known as an eyas (FD 2007), sometimes spelled eyass.
Some small insectivorous falcons with long narrow wings are called hobbies, and some that hover while hunting for small rodents are called kestrels.
Compared to other birds of prey, the fossil record of the falcons is not well distributed in time.
The true falcons in genus Falco make up over one-half of the extant species of Falconidae.
Hierofalcons represent taxa with usually more phaeomelanins, which impart reddish or brown colors, and generally more strongly patterned plumage reminiscent of hawks.
The falcon lineage—probably of North American or African, possibly Middle Eastern or European origin, given the distribution of fossil and living Falco taxa—is likely to be somewhat older, however.
Adult falcons have thin tapered wings, which enable them to fly at high speed and to change direction rapidly.
Fledgling falcons, in their first year of flying, have longer flight feathers, which makes their configuration more like that of a general-purpose bird such as a broadwing.
Very similar to these and sometimes included therein are the 4 or so species of hierofalcons (literally, "hawk-falcons").
The morphology of the syrinx, which contributes well to resolving the overall phylogeny of the Falconidae (see Griffiths 1999; Griffiths et al.
The falcon family Falconidae includes about 60 species of diurnal birds of prey, notably the falcons and caracaras.
Falcon is the common name for birds of prey comprising the genus Falco in the family Falconidae, characterized by a short, curved, notched beak, and thin, long, tapered and powerful wings adapted for swift flight.