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  Profile

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  In flight

Birds of Prey

Saker Falcon

Falco cherrug

• rare
• 150 km/h
• Endangered

Prized by falconers for millennia. Hunts in low horizontal pursuit rather than the peregrine's diving stoop.

Population

Roughly 7,200-8,800 mature individuals globally, in continuing decline

Habitat

Open grasslands, steppe, and semi-desert with scattered trees, forest edge, or cliffs for nesting

Fun fact

The Saker Falcon can reach roughly 150 km/h (93 mph) in level flight, and it is the national bird of Mongolia, Hungary, and the United Arab Emirates, where it has been central to falconry for centuries.

Range

Breeds from Central Europe across the Palearctic steppes to Manchuria; winters in the Sahel, Arabian Peninsula, and Qinghai-Tibet Plateau

Diet

Primarily ground squirrels and other small mammals, plus birds; occasionally large lizards

Size

0.51 m

Wingspan

1.12 m

Lifespan

10 years