Falcons are a group of birds belonging to the genus Falco and the order Falconiformes. They are all birds of prey with diurnal habits and very similar physically, although they vary greatly in their plumage and size. The larger ones are known as falcons, while the smaller ones are often called kestrels or buzzards.
The anatomical and behavioral characteristics of falcons are closely related to their diet. Both their physical features and their habits indicate that these animals are predators. However, what do hawks eat, exactly? We tell you about it in this article on our site.
Hawk Features
To understand what falcons eat, you need to know them a little better. For this reason, we are going to talk about some characteristics of the falcon that are closely related to its diet.
Falcons are small to medium-sized diurnal birds of prey that are distributed throughout the world. The length of its body varies between 25 and 45 centimeters and its wingspan can exceed one meter. Females are often considerably larger and slender.
Among the characteristics of the falcon, its compact and muscular body stands out. From it stem long, narrow wings ending in a more or less sharp point. This makes them one of the fastest birds in the world and gives them a great ability to maneuver during flight. Unlike other large birds of prey, they are not good gliders, so they flap their wings frequently.
As for its beak, it is specialized in predation, that is, it curves down and ends in a kind of hook that allows you to tear the meat. However, it is shorter than that of other birds of prey and has one or more triangular projections that function as teeth. Their claws, arched and sharp, are used to catch and transport their prey.
Falcon feeding
Falcons are carnivorous and predatory animals To catch their prey they use their fast and agile flight, grabbing them with their strong claws. Afterwards, they transport them to a safe place, where they tear their flesh and feed on it. However, as we shall see, hunting tactics differ between different types of falcons.
The falcon's diet is very varied depending on the distribution and size of the animal, so answering what falcons eat is not easy. In a very general way, we can include among its prey the following animals:
- Large insects.
- Rodents.
- Small and medium birds.
- Bats.
- Small reptiles.
Given the marked differences between species, in the following sections we are going to talk about the feeding of the best-known falcons, dividing them into the following types:
- Kernicalos.
- Hawks.
- Hawks.
It is important not to confuse a hawk with an eagle, as it is very common due to their physical similarities. Therefore, we encourage you to read this other article on our site about Characteristics of eagles.
Feeding of the kestrels
Some of the smallest Falconiformes Some of the are known as kestrels, since their size rarely exceeds 35 centimeters. Its name is due to its hunting tactics. These birds hover, that is, they remain suspended in the air by rapidly flapping their wings as they scan the ground for prey. If they find one, they swoop down on it.
The diet of kestrels is based on small animals. Among them, the large arthropods (especially insects) stand out, although they can also consume small rodents, reptiles and small or medium-sized birds.
Examples of what kestrels eat
This is what hawks known as kestrels eat:
- Kernicale (Falco tinnunculus): its diet is varied and opportunistic, so its feeding depends a lot on the availability of prey.
- Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni): they are basically insectivorous animals, although they usually feed on all kinds of invertebrates. When they hunt in groups, which is quite common, they can eat small vertebrates.
- American kestrel or red falcon (Falco sparverius): more than half of their prey are arthropods, although they also usually consume vertebrates.
Feeding the hawks
Falcons are small-sized falcons, with a length similar to that of kestrels. Their flight is slower than that of other Falconiformes birds, although they are very agile hunting other animals on the fly.
The feeding of hawks is very similar in all known species. Their favorite prey items are large insects, such as grasshoppers and some beetles. In addition, among the prey that these falcons eat are small birds, especially steppe or wading birds, and various types of bats.
Examples of what hawks eat
These are the best-known hawks, all with a very similar diet:
- European Falcon (Falco subbuteo).
- African Hawk (Falco cuvierii).
- Eastern Hawk (Falco severus).
What do the largest falcons eat?
In this section we are going to see what the falcons themselves eat, that is, the larger Falconiformes In many cases, they eat It deals with birds that exceed 40 centimeters. Because of this, their prey is often larger than that of previous birds. Like the hawks, it usually catches them on the fly, being able to carry out spectacular chases.
Falcons feed mainly on medium-sized birds, such as pigeons, blackbirds or partridges. However, falcons are very opportunistic birds and can catch all kinds of birds, including some very large ones. In addition, they can eat bats and various types of insects.
Examples of what hawks eat
This is what the most popular falcons eat:
- Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus): Although it prefers to eat medium-sized birds, such as pigeons, it can consume small birds, such as sparrows, or birds as large as gray herons.
- Falcon or Plumbeous Falcon (Falco femoralis): most of its prey (around 90%) are birds, such as pigeons and cuckoos. However, it also tends to consume some rodents and insects such as beetles and moths.
- Bat Falcon (Falco rufigularis): Although it is known as a falcon, it is one of the smallest Falconiformes. His speci alty is hunting bats during dawn and dusk. It can also eat small birds, such as swifts, and insects, especially dragonflies and moths.
