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Caracaras and Falcons

11 Bird Species

American Kestrel

The smallest of North America's raptors, this extremely colorful and delicate falcon shows a striking head pattern with two vertical dark bars and a dark spot on the nape. Adult Male: The wings and crown are blue-gray, with a rufous spot on top of the crown. The back is rufous with black barring. The more...

Length: 23 cm Wingspan: 51 cm

Aplomado Falcon

This slim long-tailed falcon is uniquely patterned. It has slate gray upperparts, a white face and breast, with a dark crown, dark eye line and moustacial stripe, and a white stripe running behind the eye and around the nape. A dark belly band or vest separates the white breast from the russet belly, more...

Length: 38 cm Wingspan: 102 cm

Collared Forest-Falcon

With its short wings, long tail, and long legs, this tropical raptor looks much more like an accipiter than a falcon. Upperparts are blackish. Underparts are unmarked white or buff, with a whitish collar around the neck. A black crescent extends across the white cheek. The tail is black with narrow w more...

Length: 52 cm Wingspan: 79 cm

Crested Caracara

The long-necked, long-tailed shape and striking plumage of this species is unique among North American raptors. The head and neck are white, with a black crown and crest, and red facial skin from the eyes to the nostrils. The bill is bluish gray. The breast and upper back are white with fine black ba more...

Length: 49 cm Wingspan: 114 cm

Eurasian Hobby

This small falcon has long narrow wings and a relatively short tail. Dark gray above. The dark crown and mustache are reminiscent of Peregrine Falcon, but with a short white supercillium. Breast is white with fine black streaks. Undertail coverts and leg feathering are bright rufous. In flight, under more...

Length: 28 cm Wingspan: 74 cm

Eurasian Kestrel

This Eurasian species is slightly larger than American Kestrel. Male: Gray head with single mustache mark. Back is rufous with black spots, while the breast is buffy with fine streaks. The lower back and tail are pale gray with a broad black subterminal band. Female is similar to male, but lacks gray more...

Length: 30 cm Wingspan: 69 cm

Gyrfalcon

This barrel-chested, broad-winged raptor is the largest of falcons and is an extremely powerful flyer. The tail is quite long, so the wingtips only extend about two-thirds of the way down on resting birds. There are three color morphs: white, gray, and dark, with the gray being the most commonly enco more...

Length: 51 cm Wingspan: 122 cm

Merlin

This small falcon appears darker and bulkier than the more common American Kestrel and its flight style is much more powerful and direct. Proportionally larger-headed and flatter-crowned than a kestrel. The single mustache mark is usually indistinct or lacking. Males are solid gray above and buffy be more...

Length: 28 cm Wingspan: 58 cm

Peregrine Falcon

This large falcon is slate-gray or blackish above, with a black crown and bold mustache that give the bird a helmeted look. The breast is whitish with black spots. Black barring covers the belly, undertail coverts, and legs. At rest, the wing tips extend almost to the end of the tail. Juveniles are b more...

Length: 41 cm Wingspan: 109 cm

Prairie Falcon

This large falcon of the western steppes is warm brown overall. The face shows a thin mustache mark and a small pale area surrounding the large dark eye. The eye-ring and cere are yellow. The underparts are whitish with dark spots. Juveniles are darker brown above and buffier below, with gray eye-rin more...

Length: 37 cm Wingspan: 90 cm

Red-footed Falcon

A gray, kestrel-sized falcon with long slender wings and a long, barred tail. Adult male: Slate-gray upperparts with gray underparts, darker on the face, orange eyering. Bill is mostly orange or yellow-orange with a dark tip. Rusty orange-brown undertail coverts extend onto lower belly. Red feet. Adu more...

Length: 29 cm Wingspan: 72 cm

Non-vegetated Areas

3 species

American Kestrel

Falco sparverius

Rimrocks and Mesas, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Oak Savannah and Woodlands

Peregrine Falcon

Falco peregrinus

Rocky Cliffs and Gorges, Rimrocks and Mesas, Tidal Mudflats and Shallows, Urban Landscapes, Fresh Water Marshes, Lakes Resevoirs, Open Country and Grasslands, Alpine Tundra and Meadows

Prairie Falcon

Falco mexicanus

Rocky Cliffs and Gorges, Rimrocks and Mesas, Open Country and Grasslands, Deserts and Sagebrush Plains, Alpine Tundra and Meadows

Salt Water

3 species

Gyrfalcon

Falco rusticolus

Coastal Cliffs, Tidal Mudflats and Shallows, Fresh Water Marshes, Open Country and Grasslands, Alpine Tundra and Meadows

Merlin

Falco columbarius

Tidal Mudflats and Shallows, Urban Landscapes, Suburban/residential Landscapes, Lakes Resevoirs, Open Country and Grasslands, Alpine Tundra and Meadows, Boreal Forest, Northern Wooded Swamps, Western Confierous Forest, Streamside Gallery Forest and Riparia

Peregrine Falcon

Falco peregrinus

Rocky Cliffs and Gorges, Rimrocks and Mesas, Tidal Mudflats and Shallows, Urban Landscapes, Fresh Water Marshes, Lakes Resevoirs, Open Country and Grasslands, Alpine Tundra and Meadows

Human-altered Areas

3 species

Eurasian Kestrel

Falco tinnunculus

Urban Landscapes, Fresh Water Marshes, Open Country and Grasslands

Merlin

Falco columbarius

Peregrine Falcon

Falco peregrinus

Rocky Cliffs and Gorges, Rimrocks and Mesas, Tidal Mudflats and Shallows, Urban Landscapes, Fresh Water Marshes, Lakes Resevoirs, Open Country and Grasslands, Alpine Tundra and Meadows

Fresh Water

4 species

Eurasian Kestrel

Falco tinnunculus

Urban Landscapes, Fresh Water Marshes, Open Country and Grasslands

Gyrfalcon

Falco rusticolus

Coastal Cliffs, Tidal Mudflats and Shallows, Fresh Water Marshes, Open Country and Grasslands, Alpine Tundra and Meadows

Merlin

Falco columbarius

Peregrine Falcon

Falco peregrinus

Rocky Cliffs and Gorges, Rimrocks and Mesas, Tidal Mudflats and Shallows, Urban Landscapes, Fresh Water Marshes, Lakes Resevoirs, Open Country and Grasslands, Alpine Tundra and Meadows

Grassland and Scrubland

10 species

Forest and Woodlands

6 species