The Peregrine Falcon is the fastest animal on Earth, capable of diving at speeds well over 200 miles per hour in a hunting stoop, folding its wings and plummeting onto flying birds with astonishing force. A powerful, crow-sized falcon, slate-gray above and pale with fine barring below, it wears a black "helmet" and thick dark sideburns that frame its face. Built for speed, with long pointed wings and a compact body, it takes birds in mid-air, from shorebirds and ducks to the pigeons that abound in cities.
The Peregrine is one of conservation's great success stories. Devastated by DDT, which thinned its eggshells, it disappeared from much of eastern North America by the 1960s, then was brought back through captive breeding and reintroduction after the pesticide was banned. Today it nests on Great Lakes cliffs and, famously, on tall city buildings and bridges that mimic its natural cliff ledges, and Michigan cities host nesting pairs watched by webcam. It is seen year-round in urban areas and along shorelines, and more widely during migration.
Preys almost entirely on other birds, caught in flight, ranging from shorebirds, songbirds, and waterfowl to the pigeons and starlings abundant in cities. It hunts by climbing high and diving in a rapid stoop to strike prey in mid-air, then following the falling bird to seize it.
In its hunting stoop the Peregrine can exceed 200 miles per hour, making it the fastest animal on the planet. It folds its wings and plummets onto flying prey from above, striking with tremendous force.
Tall buildings and bridges mimic the cliff ledges Peregrines naturally use for nesting, and cities offer abundant prey like pigeons. Urban nest sites, often on skyscrapers and bridges, have been key to the species' recovery.
Yes. It was nearly wiped out in eastern North America by the pesticide DDT, which thinned its eggshells. After DDT was banned, captive breeding and reintroduction restored the population, and it now nests on Great Lakes cliffs and city structures.
A nestling Peregrine is an eyas. Juveniles are brown rather than slate-gray, with heavy vertical streaking below instead of the adult's fine horizontal barring, and they keep that look for about a year.
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