The Barbary falcon (Falco peregrinus pelegrinoides) is a medium-sized falcon about the size of a crow. This bird of prey is mainly resident.

Description & appearance

The Barbary falcon is a bird of semi-desert and dry open hills.

It is similar to the peregrine falcon, but smaller at 33–39 cm length with a wingspan of 76–98 cm. Recently, it has been found to be genetically similar to other subspecies of Peregrine falcon, so it is now considered a subspecies.

The female is larger than the male. It resembles its relative in general structure.

Adults have paler grey-blue upperparts than the peregrine, and often have a buff wash to the barred underparts, whereas the larger species has a white background color. The nape is rufous, but this is difficult to see.

Sexes are similar, apart from size, but the young birds have brown upperparts and streaked underparts. The streaking is lighter than in the juvenile peregrine.

The Barbary falcon also bears some resemblance to the lanner falcon, but can be distinguished from that species at rest by the head-pattern, and in flight, by the proportions, flight action and underwing pattern.

Voice, singing & call

The call is a high-pitched "rek-rek-rek".

Distribution & habitat

The Barbary falcon is native to Northern and Eastern parts of Africa (Algeria, Canary Islands, Egypt, Eritrea, Morocco, Niger, Sudan, Somalia and Tunisia. It is also common in Middle East, Central Asia and South Asia, particularly in Afghanistan, China, India, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Libya, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan. It is vagrant in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Djibouti, Greece, Italy, Kenya, Lebanon, Mali, Malta, Nepal, Portugal, Qatar, Senegal and parts of Turkey not in Europe.

Breeding, mating, chicks, juveniles & raise

It typically lays its eggs in cliff-ledge nests.