Falcons and Caracaras (Falconidae)

Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) - HBW 2, p. 274

French: Faucon pèlerin German: Wanderfalke Spanish: Halcón Peregrino
Other common names: Barbary Falcon (pelegrinoides); Kleinschmidt's Falcon ( kreyenborgi)

Taxonomy: Falco Peregrinus Tunstall, 1771, Great Britain.
Formerly placed in separate genus, Rhynchodon. Race pelegrinoides often considered separate species, usually incorporating race babylonicus, although latter has, in turn, been considered independent species; hybrids between pelegrinoides and other forms of present species are interfertile. Kleinschmidt's Falcon named as separate species, F. kreyenborgi, but is actually colour morph of race cassini. Nineteen subspecies normally recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution:

  • tundrius C. M. White, 1968 - Arctic tundra of North America, from Alaska to Greenland.
  • anatum Bonaparte, 1838 - North America S of tundra to N Mexico, except NW Pacific Coast.
  • pealei Ridgway, 1873 - coastal W North America from Washington N to W Alaska, and W through Aleutian and Commander Is; possibly also coastal Kamchatka and Kuril Is.

     See all 19 subspecies
  • tundrius C. M. White, 1968 - Arctic tundra of North America, from Alaska to Greenland.
  • anatum Bonaparte, 1838 - North America S of tundra to N Mexico, except NW Pacific Coast.
  • pealei Ridgway, 1873 - coastal W North America from Washington N to W Alaska, and W through Aleutian and Commander Is; possibly also coastal Kamchatka and Kuril Is.
  • cassini Sharpe, 1873 - W South America, from Ecuador (locally) S through Bolivia and N Argentina to S Chile, Tierra del Fuego and Falkland Is.
  • japonensis Gmelin, 1788 - NE Siberia S to Kamchatka and Japan (may not be race of coastal Kamchatka).
  • furuitii Momiyama, 1927 - Volcano Is and possibly Bonin Is.
  • calidus Latham, 1790 - tundra of Eurasia, from Lapland E to NE Siberia, roughly to region of R Yana and R Indigirka.
  • peregrinus Tunstall, 1771 - Eurasia S of tundra and N of Pyrenees, Balkans and Himalayas, from British Is E to Amurland and Ussuriland in Russian Far East.
  • brookei Sharpe, 1873 - S France, Spain and coastal N Africa E through Mediterranean to Caucasus.
  • babylonicus P. L. Sclater, 1861 - Asia, from E Iran to Mongolia.
  • pelegrinoides Temminck, 1829 - Canary Is E through inland N Africa to Iraq, and probably Iran.
  • madens Ripley & Watson, 1963 - Cape Verde Is.
  • minor Bonaparte, 1850 - Africa S of Sahara, and N into extreme S Morocco.
  • radama Hartlaub, 1861 - Madagascar and Comoro Is.
  • peregrinator Sundevall, 1837 - Pakistan, India and Sri Lanka E to SE China.
  • ernesti Sharpe, 1894 - Indonesia and Philippines E to New Guinea and Bismarck Archipelago.
  • nesiotes Mayr, 1941 - Vanuatu and New Caledonia (race uncertain) E to Fiji.
  • macropus Swainson, 1837 - Australia (except SW).
  • submelanogenys Mathews, 1912 - SW Australia.