A peregrine falcon resembles an arrow both in the air and perched.  Their favorite food are pigeons, jays, black birds and water birds.  Most insect eating birds are now in decline from newer pesticides, so the peregrine faces another threat. Do you think that the fact that the red knot, a chunky sandpiper, has been clocked at 110 MPH in straight flight has any thing to do with the hunting habits of the peregrine falcon?

Peregrines are about 15 to 20 inches in length, and anywhere from one and a quarter to two and and three quarters pounds, with the female, as with all raptors, the larger of the two sexes. "Peregrinus" is a latin word, meaning "to wander", and the peregrine falcon, along with the osprey, is the most widely distributed raptor in the world. Not only is the peregrine found on every continent, except Antarctica, but in almost all conceivable habitats, and at any elevation up to 9,000 feet! "Falco" means "hook shaped", which can refer to the falcon's beak or talons.

  The peregrine lives on rocky cliffs where its nest is unapproachable from the ground.  Because a reasonable portion of their diet is insect eating birds such as starlings, it became extinct in the east, principally from DDT pesticide poisoning.  In a process known as bio-magnification,  top of the food chain predators, such as the Peregrine, accumulate the concentrated pesticide toxins from the animals they prey on, who in turn, have accumulated from their environment, prey, etc. The eggshells become too thin to incubate, collapsing under the weight of the nesting parent. After the banning of DDT in the United States, The Peregrine Fund released 4,000 captive-bred peregrines in 28 states over 25 years.

  Peregrines are the favored bird of falconers, and have been used in hunting for thousands of years. Falconers played a key role in the Peregrine’s recovery after their decline during the DDT years.

  Peregrines don't build nests, but scrape a small depression on a cliffside, preferably near water. Ironically, the peregrines’s nesting preference made it very comfortable nesting on New York City skyscrapers, a fact which contributed greatly to its restoration, and put a welcome check on the ever-burgeoning pigeon population. The female peregrine lays 3 to 4 eggs, which she incubates for about 34 days. The hatchlings fledge after 5 or 6 weeks.