Peregrine Falcon

Peregrine Falcon. Back from the bring , Falco peregrinus. , Long pointed wings, powerful flight muscles, and rapid wingbeats define the peregrine falcon, a swift and agile predator of birds. Flying high above its intended prey, a peregrine folds its wings and dives or "stoops" at speeds approaching 200 mph before striking its prey in mid-air. After it was introduced in the late 1940s, the pesticide DDT began to travel through the food chain. By eating birds that had eaten contaminated seeds or insects, peregrines accumulated concentrations of the pesticide in their own bodies, causing eggshell thinning and reproductive failure. By the 1960s, peregrine falcons had disappeared from the eastern United States and were critically endangered in other parts of the continent. Federal protection under the endangered Species Act, a ban on the use of DDT, and the efforts of conservationists and falconers to raise and release captive-bred falcons helped reestablish peregrines in much of their former range., The word "peregrine" means "wanderer." Migrating peregrines may fly thousands of miles each spring and fall. Breeding populations of peregrines occur on every continent except Antarctica. Traditionally nesting on cliff ledges, urban peregrines also nest on skyscrapers and under high bridges.