Peregrine Falcon
Falco peregrinus
The peregrine falcon is a widespread bird of prey. It is a large, crow-sized falcon. It has a blue-grey back, barred white underparts, and a black head and moustache. As is typical of bird-eating raptors, peregrine falcons are sexually dimorphic, females being considerably larger than males. The peregrine is renowned for its speed, reaching over 389 km/h during its characteristic hunting stoop making it the fastest member of the animal kingdom.
The peregrine's breeding range includes land regions from the Arctic tundra to the tropics. It can be found nearly everywhere on Earth, except extreme polar regions, very high mountains, and most tropical rainforests; the only major ice-free landmass from which it is entirely absent is New Zealand. This makes it the world's most widespread raptor and one of the most widely found bird species.
