Northern goshawk, Goshawk - Accipiter gentilis (Linnaeus, 1758) Διπλoσάϊvo, Διπλοσιάχινο - Cyprus

See also

List of Cyprus birds of prey on this blog - Λίστα Αρπαχτικών πουλιών της Κύπρου σε αυτό το ιστολόγιο

Cyprus birds of prey - Αρπαχτικά πουλιά της Κύπρου

The northern goshawk (/ˈɡɒsˌhɔːk/; Accipiter gentilis) is a species of medium-large bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, a family which also includes other extant diurnal raptors, such as eagles, buzzards and harriers. As a species in the genus Accipiter, the goshawk is often considered a "true hawk". The scientific name is Latin; Accipiter is "hawk", from accipere, "to grasp", and gentilis is "noble" or "gentle" because in the Middle Ages only the nobility were permitted to fly goshawks for falconry.

This species was first described by Linnaeus in the 10th edition of his Systema naturae (1758) as Falco gentilis.

It is a widespread species that inhabits many of the temperate parts of the Northern Hemisphere. The northern goshawk is the only species in the genus Accipiter found in both Eurasia and North America. It may have the second widest distribution of any true member of the family Accipitridae, behind arguably only the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos), which has a broader range to the south of Asia than the goshawk. The only other acciptrid species to also range in both North America and Eurasia, according to current opinion, is the more Arctic-restricted rough-legged buzzard (Buteo lagopus) Except in a small portion of southern Asia, it is the only species of "goshawk" in its range and it is thus often referred to, both officially and unofficially, as simply the "goshawk". It is mainly resident, but birds from colder regions migrate south for the winter. In North America, migratory goshawks are often seen migrating south along mountain ridge tops at nearly any time of the fall depending on latitude

Distribution

The northern goshawk has a large circumpolar distribution. In Eurasia, it is found in most areas of Europe excluding Ireland and Iceland. It has a fairly spotty distribution in western Europe (e.g. Great Britain, Spain, France) but is more or less found continuously through the rest of the continent. Their Eurasian distribution sweeps continuously across most of Russia, excluding the fully treeless tundra in the northern stretches, to the western limits of Siberia as far as Anadyr and Kamchatka. In the Eastern Hemisphere, they are found in their southern limits in extreme northwestern Morocco, Corsica and Sardinia, the "toe" of Italy, southern Greece, Turkey, the Caucasus, Sinkiang's Tien Shan, in some parts of Tibet and the Himalayas (India and Nepal), western China and Japan. In winter, northern goshawks may be found rarely as far south as Taif in Saudi Arabia and perhaps Tonkin, Vietnam.

In North America, they are most broadly found in the western United States, including Alaska, and western Canada. Their breeding range in the western contiguous United States largely consists of the wooded foothills of the Rocky Mountains and many other large mountain ranges from Washington to southern California extending east to central Colorado and westernmost Texas. Somewhat discontinuous breeding populations are found in southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico, thence also somewhat spottily into western Mexico down through Sonora and Chihuahua along the Sierra Madre Occidental as far as Jalisco and Guerrero, their worldwide southern limit as a breeding species.

The goshawk continues east through much of Canada as a native species, but is rarer in most of the eastern United States, especially the Midwest where they are not typically found outside the Great Lakes region, where a good-sized breeding population occurs in the northern parts of Minnesota, Illinois, Michigan and somewhat into Ohio; a very small population persists in the extreme northeast corner of North Dakota. They breed also in mountainous areas of New England, New York, central Pennsylvania and northwestern New Jersey, sporadically down to extreme northwestern Maryland and northeastern West Virginia. Vagrants have been reported in Ireland, North Africa (central Morocco, northern Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt); the Arabian Peninsula (Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia), southwest Asia (southern Iran, Pakistan), western India (Gujarat) and on Izu-shoto (south of Japan) and the Commander Islands, and in most of the parts of the United States where they do not breed.

Northern goshawks can be found in both deciduous and coniferous forests. While the species might show strong regional preferences for certain trees, they seem to have no strong overall preferences nor even a preference between deciduous or coniferous trees despite claims to the contrary. More important than the type of trees are the composition of a given tree stand, which should be tall, old-growth with intermediate to heavy canopy coverage (often more than 40%) and minimal density undergrowth, both of which are favorable for hunting conditions. Also, goshawks typically require proximity to openings in which to execute additional hunting. More so than in North America, the goshawks of Eurasia, especially central Europe, may live in fairly urbanized patchworks of small woods, shelter-belts and copses and even use largely isolated trees in central parts of Eurasian cities. Even if they are far more wary of human presence than the Eurasian sparrowhawk, northern goshhawks are known to live in some relatively densely wooded areas of large cities of Central Europe, such as Berlin and Hamburg; it is a relatively new phenomenon that started in the 20th century. Access to waterways and riparian zones of any kind is not uncommon in goshawk home ranges but seems to not be a requirement. Narrow tree-lined riparian zones in otherwise relatively open habitats can provide suitable wintering habitat in the absence of more extensive woodlands. The northern goshawk can be found at almost any altitude, but recently is typically found at high elevations due to a paucity of extensive forests remaining in lowlands across much of its range. Altitudinally, goshawks may live anywhere up to a given mountain range's tree line, which is usually 3,000 m (9,800 ft) in elevation or less. The northern limit of their distribution also coincides with the tree line and here may adapt to dwarf tree communities, often along drainages of the lower tundra. In winter months, the northernmost or high mountain populations move down to warmer forests with lower elevations, often continuing to avoid detection except while migrating. A majority of goshawks around the world remain sedentary throughout the year

Νεαρό έξω από την φωλιά του. Φωτογραφίες στον ποταμό Διάριζο  στον εκδρομικό χώρο Κομιτιτζή κοντά στο χωριό Μυλικούρι στις 18/6/2021

Photos Milikouri 18/6/2021 by George Konstantinou

Breeding

The northern goshawk is one of the most extensively studied raptors in terms of its breeding habits. Adult goshawks return to their breeding grounds usually between March and April, but locally as early as February. If prey levels remain high, adults may remain on their breeding ground all year. Courtship flights, calls and even nest building has been recorded in Finland exceptionally in September and October right after young dispersed, whereas in most of Fennoscandia, breeding does not commence any earlier than March and even then only when it is a warm spring. Most breeding activity occurs between April and July, exceptionally a month earlier or later. Even in most areas of Alaska, most pairs have produced young by May. Courtship flights typical are above the canopy on sunny, relatively windless days in early spring with the goshawks’ long main tail feathers held together and the undertail coverts spread so wide to give them an appearance of having a short, broad-tail with a long dark strip extending from the center. Display flights not infrequently escalate into an undulating flight, similar to a wood pigeon but with sharper turns and descents, and are sometimes embellished with sky-dives that can cover over 200 m (660 ft). One study found undulating display flights more than three times more often done by males than females. After display flights have concluded, the male typically brings a prepared fresh prey item to the female as part of the courtship. In general, these displays are presumably to show (or reinforce) to the potential mate their health and prowess as breeding partner. Copulation is brief and frequent, ranging up to nearly 520 times per clutch (on average about 10 times a day or 100-300 throughout the season), and may be the male's way of ensuring paternity since he is frequently away gathering food by the time of egg-laying, although extra-pair copulation is extremely rare. Female solicits copulations by facing away from male with drooped wings and flared tail-coverts. The male, wings drooped and tail-coverts flared, drops from a branch to gain momentum, then swoops upward and mounts her back. Both birds usually call while mating Fidelity studies from Europe show that about 80–90% of adult females breed with the same male in consecutive years, whereas up to 96% of males mate with the same female in consecutive years. In California, 72% of males retained relationship with the same mates in consecutive years while 70% of females did the same. Males intruding in Hamburg, Germany territories were in some cases not evicted and ended up mating with the female, with the male of the pair not stopping it. In migratory, northernmost populations, mate retention in consecutive years is low. Males are sometimes killed by females during courtship and encounters can be dangerous especially if he does not bring food to courtship and he often seems nervous withdrawing with a trill at a given chance

Nest characteristics

Nesting areas are indefinite, a nest may be used for several years, also a nest built years prior may be used or an entirely new nest may be constructed. When nest constructing, the pair will often roost together. Males construct most new nests but females may assist somewhat if reinforcing old nests. While the male is building, the female perches in the vicinity, occasionally screaming, sometimes flying to inspect the nest. At other times, the female may take a more active role, or even the primary one, in new nest construction and this is subject to considerable individual variation. For the nesting tree, more than 20 species of conifer have been used including spruce, fir, larch, pine and hemlock. Broadleaf trees used including ash, alder, aspen, beech, birch, elm, hickory, hornbeam, lime, maple (including sycamore), oak, poplar, tamarack, wild cherry and willow. In some areas, the nests may be lined with hard pieces of bark and also with green sprigs of conifers. Often the tallest tree in a given stand is selected as the nest tree and this is often the dominant tree species within the given region and forest. Therefore, hardwood trees are usually used as the nesting tree in the eastern United States while conifers are usually used in the western United States. Most nests are constructed under the canopy or near the main fork of a tree and in North America, averaging nest height ranged from 5.8 m (19 ft) (in the Yukon) to 16.9 m (55 ft) (in New Mexico), elsewhere as in Europe average height is between 9 and 25 m (30 and 82 ft In the dwarf trees of the tundra, nests have been found at only 1 to 2 m (3.3 to 6.6 ft) off the ground, and, in the tundra and elsewhere, very rarely on felled trees, stumps or on the ground. In some studies from North America up to 15% of nests are in dead trees but this is far rarer in Eurasia. More significant than species is the maturity and height of the nesting tree, its structure (which should have ample surface around the main fork) and, perhaps most significantly, little to no understory below it. Multiple studies note the habit of nests being built in forests close to clear-fellings, swamps and heaths, lakes and meadows, roads (especially light-use logging dirt roads), railways and swathes cut along power cables, usually near such openings there'd be prominent boulders, stones or roots of fallen trees or low branches to use as plucking points. Canopy cover averaged between 60 and 96% in Europe. As is typical in widely distributed raptors from temperate-zones, those from cold regions faced south, 65% in Alaska, 54% in Norway and also in high latitudes such as sky-forests of the Arizona Rockies, otherwise usually nests face north and east.

Nests, especially after initial construction, may average between 80 and 120 cm (31 and 47 in) in length and 50 to 70 cm (20 to 28 in) in width, and are around 20 to 25 cm (7.9 to 9.8 in) deep. After many uses, a nest can range up to 160 cm (63 in) across and 120 cm (47 in) in depth and can weigh up to a ton when wet. Northern goshawks may adopt nests of other species, common buzzards contributed 5% of nests used in Schleswig-Holstein, including unusually exposed ones on edges of woods and another 2% were built by common ravens or carrion crows, but 93% were built by the goshawks themselves. While colonizing peri-urban areas in Europe, they may displace Eurasian sparrowhawks not only from their territories but may actually try to use overly small sparrowhawk nests, usually resulting in nest collapse.[9] One nest was used continuously by different pairs for a period of 17 years. A single pair may maintain up to several nests, usually up to two will occur in an area of no more than a few hundred meters. One nest may be used in sequential years, but often an alternate is selected. During an 18-year-study from Germany, many alternate nests were used, 27 pairs had two, 10 had 3, 5 had 4, one had five and one pair had as many as 11. Other regions where pairs had on average two nests were Poland, California and Arizona’s Kaibab Plateau. The extent of use of alternate nests is unknown as well as their benefit, but they may reduce significant levels of parasites and diseases within the nest. In central Europe, the goshawk's nest area can be as small 1 to 2 ha (2.5 to 4.9 acres) of woods and less than 10 hectares are commonplace. Usually only one active nest occurs per 100 ha (250 acres), are they avoid edges as nest sites and occupied nests are seldom less than 600 m (2,000 ft) apart.[clarification needed]  The most closely spaced active nests by a separate pair on record was 400 m (1,300 ft) in central Europe, another case of two active nests 200 m (660 ft) apart in Germany was a possible case of polygamy. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

                                                      Eggs

Subspecies

Accipiter gentilis albidus

Accipiter gentilis apache

Accipiter gentilis arrigonii

Accipiter gentilis atricapillus

Accipiter gentilis buteoides

Accipiter gentilis fujiyamae

Accipiter gentilis gentilis

Accipiter gentilis laingi

Accipiter gentilis marginatus

Accipiter gentilis schvedowi (eastern goshawk)

Photos Armirolivado 2022 and  Marathasa valley 2023 by Constantinos Antoniou

Black-winged kite - Elanus caeruleus (Desfontaines, 1789) Έλανος - Cyprus

See also

List of Cyprus birds of prey on this blog - Λίστα Αρπαχτικών πουλιών της Κύπρου σε αυτό το ιστολόγιο

Cyprus birds of prey - Αρπαχτικά πουλιά της Κύπρου

The black-winged kite (Elanus caeruleus), also known as the black-shouldered kite (not to be confused with the closely-related Australian species of the same name), is a small diurnal bird of prey in the family Accipitridae best known for its habit of hovering over open grasslands in the manner of the much smaller kestrels. This Palearctic and Afrotropical species was sometimes combined with the Australian black-shouldered kite (Elanus axillaris) and the white-tailed kite (Elanus leucurus) of North and South America which together form a superspecies. This kite is distinctive, with long wings; white, grey and black plumage; and owl-like forward-facing eyes with red irises. The owl-like behaviour is even more pronounced in the letter-winged kite (Elanus scriptus), a nocturnal relative in Australia. Although mainly seen on plains, they are sometimes seen on grassy slopes of hills in the higher elevation regions of Asia. They are not migratory, but show nomadism in response to weather and food availability. They are well adapted to utilize periodic upsurges in rodent populations and can raise multiple broods in a single year unlike most birds of prey. Populations in southern Europe have grown in response to human activities, particularly agriculture and livestock rearing.

Photos Akrotiri 5/11/2020  by George Konstantinou

This long-winged raptor is predominantly grey or white with black shoulder patches, wing tips and eye stripe. The long falcon-like wings extend beyond the tail when the bird is perched. In flight, the short and square tail is visible and it is not forked as in the typical kites of the genus Milvus. When perched, often on roadside wires, it often adjusts its wings and jerks its tail up and down as if to balance itself. The sexes are alike in plumage. Their large forward-facing eyes placed under a bony shelf that shades them is distinctive; their velvety plumage and zygodactyl feet are characters shared with owls and the genus has been considered as a basal group within the Accipitridae. They are thought to have been adapted for living in savanna habitats where seasonal rodent population peaks occur. Such food resources are also favoured by the owls. The inner vanes of the feathers have velvety barbules. They have a diploid chromosome number of 68 (some older studies claimed 64 for E.c.caeruleus and 66 for E.c.vociferus) with a distinct karyotype with resemblances to the kites and honey buzzards and suggesting a basal position within the diurnal birds of prey

The black-winged kite is a species primarily of open land and semi-deserts in sub-Saharan Africa and tropical Asia, but it has a foothold within Europe in Spain and Portugal. The species range appears to be expanding in southern Europe and possibly in West Asia. The first records of breeding in Europe were in the 1860s and since then they have become more widespread and populations are on the rise. It is thought that land-use changes, particularly agriculture and pastureland have helped the species.

Several geographic populations have been named as subspecies and these include the nominate subspecies which occurs in Spain, Africa and Arabia. The subspecies vociferus is found east of this range across South Asia and into Southeast Asia. Along Sumatra, Java, Borneo and the Philippines subspecies hypoleucus (sometimes considered a full species) includes the population wahgiensis described from New Guinea. Subspecies sumatranus is not always recognized. The white-tailed kite and the black-shouldered kite were formerly included with this species but have since been treated as separate species

Although found mainly on the plains they have been seen at higher altitudes in Sikkim (3,650 m (11,980 ft)), the Nilgiris (Doddabetta, 2,670 m (8,760 ft)) and Nagaland (2,020 m (6,630 ft)).

They are said to be winter visitors in some parts of their range such as the Western Ghats

Photos Akrotiri 9/10/2021  by George Konstantinou

1. The black-winged kite breeds at different times of the year across its range. Although nesting has been noted throughout the year in India, they appear not to breed in April and May. Males establish territories and defend them from competition. Females move into the territories of males. Studies in Africa found that males were more numerous than females. Courtship is noisy and involves chases and once the pair is formed they copulate frequently. The nest is a loose platform of twigs in which 3 or 4 eggs are laid. The female spends more effort in the construction of the nest than the male. The eggs are pale creamy with spots of deep red. Both parents incubate but when the chicks hatch, the male spends more time on foraging for food Females initially feed the young, sometimes hunting close to the nest but will also receive food from the male. After fledging the young birds continue to be dependent for food on the male parent for about 80 days, initially transferring food at perch and later in the air. Young birds have reddish brown feathers on the upperparts and on the breast. The reddish colour is derived from porphyrins and is thought to provide the young birds some camouflage. Once breeding is complete females often move on to new territories sometimes deserting before the young fledge, leaving males to feed and raise the young. Both males and females show considerable nomadism. Unlike most birds of prey, they are capable of raising multiple broods in a year, and young birds are known to disperse widely, adaptations that helps them utilize periodic rodent population surges. Their opportunistic breeding capabilities are also accompanied by irregular patterns of moult. Young birds show "arrested" moult, retaining feathers for a season and then rapidly moulting them in a serial descendent pattern, where more than one primary feather is moulted at the same time. The adult plumage is found after two years.
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3. Their prey includes grasshoppers, crickets and other large insects, lizards, and rodents. Injured birds, small snakes and frogs have also been reported. The black-winged kite flies slowly during hunting like a harrier, but it will also hover like a Kestrel. It has on rare occasions been known to hunt prey in flight. Perches are used for hunting and for feeding but large prey may sometimes be handled on the ground.[30] In southern Africa, they appear to favour roadside verges for foraging and are sometimes killed by collisions with vehicles.
4. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Short-toed snake eagle - Circaetus gallicus (Gmelin, JF, 1788) - Φιδαετός - Cyprus

See also

List of Cyprus birds of prey on this blog - Λίστα Αρπαχτικών πουλιών της Κύπρου σε αυτό το ιστολόγιο

Cyprus birds of prey - Αρπαχτικά πουλιά της Κύπρου

The short-toed snake eagle was formally described in 1788 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the falcons, eagles and their relatives in the genus Falco and coined the binomial name Falco gallicus. Gmelin based his description on the "Jean le Blanc" that had been described by the English ornithologist John Latham and the French ornithologists Mathurin Jacques Brisson and the Comte de Buffon. The short-toed snake eagle is now placed in the genus Circaetus that was introduced in 1816 by the French ornithologist Louis Jean Pierre Vieillot. The genus name is from the Ancient Greek kirkos, a type of hawk, and aetos, "eagle". The specific epithet gallicus is Latin for "Gaul" ie France.

Photos Athienou 25/2/2021 and 10/4/2021 by George Konstantinou

This is an Old World species found throughout the Mediterranean basin, into Russia and the Middle East, and parts of Western Asia, and in the Indian Subcontinent and also further east in some Indonesian islands.

Those present on the northern edge of the Mediterranean and other parts of Europe migrate mainly to sub-Saharan Africa north of the equator, leaving in September/October and returning in April/May. In the Middle and Far East the populations are resident. In Europe, it is most numerous in Spain where it is fairly common but elsewhere it is rare in many parts of its range. A bird on the Isles of Scilly, Britain, in October 1999 was the first confirmed record for that country.

The short-toed snake eagle is found in open cultivated plains, arid stony deciduous scrub areas and foothills and semi-desert areas. It requires trees for nesting and open habitats, such as cultivations and grasslands for foraging

Its prey is mostly reptiles, mainly snakes, but also some lizards.[19] Sometimes they become entangled with larger snakes and battle on the ground. Occasionally, they prey on small mammals up to the size of a rabbit, and rarely birds and large insects.

This eagle is generally very silent. On occasions, it emits a variety of musical whistling notes. When breeding, it lays only one egg. It can live up to 17 years.

The short-toed snake eagle has suffered a steep decline in numbers and range in Europe and is now rare and still decreasing in several countries due to changes in agriculture and land use. It needs protection. In the middle and far eastern part of its range, this species is not yet threatened.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Amur falcon - Falco amurensis Radde, 1863 - Ασιατικό μαυροκιρκίνεζο - Cyprus (1st record )

See also

List of Cyprus birds of prey on this blog - Λίστα Αρπαχτικών πουλιών της Κύπρου σε αυτό το ιστολόγιο

Cyprus birds of prey - Αρπαχτικά πουλιά της Κύπρου

Πέντε σπανιότατα πουλιά της Κύπρου (WEB TV) Του Γιώργου Κωνσταντίνου Εφημερίδα πολίτης 14/1/2018

Ασιατικό Μαυροκιρκίνεζο αρσενικό, Κύπρος (1η αναφορά) - Αγία Βαρβάρα, Πάφος 30/4/2016
Amur Falcon male -  Cyprus (1st record )  ), discovered by Matt Smith  Agia Varvara , Pafos 30/4/2016
Thanks to Matt Smith

This species is the eastern form of western Red-footed Falcon, and VERY rarely found west of Arabia. It breeds in Mongolia, China and Siberia

The Amur falcon (Falco amurensis) is a small raptor of the falcon family. It breeds in south-eastern Siberia and Northern China before migrating in large flocks across India and over the Arabian Sea to winter in Southern Africa. It was earlier treated as a subspecies of the red-footed falcon (Falco vespertinus) and known as the eastern red-footed falcon. Males are dark grey with reddish brown thighs and undertail coverts; reddish orange eye-ring, cere, and feet. Females are duller above, with dark scaly markings on white underparts, an orange eye ring, cere, and legs. Only a pale wash of rufous is visible on their thighs and undertail coverts. Their diet consists mainly of insects, such as termites; during migration over the sea, they are thought to feed on migrating dragonflies. The route that they take from Africa back to their breeding grounds is as yet unclear.


Males are characteristically dark sooty grey above with rufous thighs and vent. In flight, the wing lining is white, contrasting with the dark wing feathers. Adult males of the closely related red-footed falcon have a dark grey wing lining. In Africa, males can be confused with melanistic Gabar goshawks, but the chestnut on the vent is distinctive. Also, there may be some superficial resemblance to the sooty falcon and the grey kestrel, but those two species both have yellow feet and cere. The wings are long as in most falcons (with a span of 63–71 cm) and at rest the wing tip reaches or extends just beyond the tail-tip.


Females can be more difficult to identify as they share a pattern common to many falcons, but are distinctive in having an orange eye-ring, a red cere and reddish orange feet. Juveniles can be confused only with those of the red-footed falcon, but lack the buffy underwing coverts.

The Amur falcon was long considered a subspecies or morph of the red-footed falcon, but it is nowadays considered distinct. Nonetheless, it is the red-footed falcon's closest relative; their relationship to other falcons is more enigmatic. They appear morphologically somewhat intermediate between kestrels and hobbies and DNA sequence data has been unable to further resolve this question, mainly due to lack of comprehensive sampling

The Amur falcon breeds in east Asia from the Transbaikalia, Amurland, and northern Mongolian region to parts of North Korea. They migrate in a broad front through India, sometimes further east over Thailand and Cambodia and then over the Arabian Sea, sometimes in passage on the Maldives and other islands to reach southern Africa. Birds going over India are thought to be aided by strong winds blowing westward. These winds are strong at an altitude of about 3000m and the birds are thought to fly at a height of above 1000m during migration. The route taken to return to their breeding grounds is not clear, but they avoid the long ocean crossing and possibly take an overland route northward through Africa and to the west of the Himalayas. Vagrants have been recorded as far west as in Italy, Sweden, St. Helena and the United Kingdom


The Amur falcon feeds mainly late in the evening or early in the morning capturing a wide range of insects in the air or on the ground. They capture most of their prey in flight, sometimes by hovering, but will also pick prey by alighting on the ground.[6] The winter diet appears to be almost entirely made up of insects[8] but they take small birds and amphibians to feed their young in their breeding range. The rains in Africa produce swarms of termites, locusts, ants and beetles that provide ample food. Their migration over the Arabian Sea coincides with the timing of the migration of dragonflies (Pantala flavescens) and these are thought to provide food during the most arduous part of their migration route. Their breeding habitats are in open wooded country with marshes. During migration they stay in open forest or grasslands, roosting colonially on exposed perches or wires.

The breeding season is May to June and several pairs may nest close together. Abandoned nest platforms belonging to birds of prey or corvids and even tree hollows are re-used for nesting. Three or four eggs are laid (at two day intervals). Both parents take turns to incubate and feed the chicks which hatch after about a month. The young birds leave the nest after about a month.


The Amur falcon hosts three species of lice, Degeeriella rufa, Colpocephalum subzerafae, and Laembothrion tinnunculi.

The wide breeding range and large population size of the Amur falcon have led to the species being assessed as being of least concern. The flocking behaviour during migration and the density at which they occur, however, expose them to hunting and other threats. During their migration from their breeding area to the winter quarters, they are plump and are hunted for food in parts of northeastern India as well as in eastern Africa. In 2012, mass trapping and capture of migrating Amur falcons in Nagaland (India) was reported in the media and a successful campaign was begun to prevent their killing. As part of this campaign, three birds were fitted with 5 gm satellite transmitters that allowed them to be tracked during their migration.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Photos 30/4/2016 by George Konstantinou

Pallid Harrier has found its leg and tail stuck on limesticks - Cyprus

See also

List of Cyprus birds of prey on this blog - Λίστα Αρπαχτικών πουλιών της Κύπρου σε αυτό το ιστολόγιο

Cyprus birds of prey - Αρπαχτικά πουλιά της Κύπρου

Pallid Harrier (Circus macrourus) (S. G. Gmelin, 1770) Στεπόκιρκος

Assyrian plum - Cordia myxa L - Μυξιά ή μύξα - Το δέντρο που ευθύνεται για εκατομμύρια θανάτους πουλιών στην Κύπρο

"It is not just the song birds that fall victim to the barbaric act of using limesticks! Here a Male Pallid Harrier has found its leg and tail stuck. The fate of this Harrier is not certain as it could end up getting the wings, tail and legs stuck rendering it vulnerable. If he tries to peck the stick off he risks getting his beak stuck together! Either way it is most likely this Harrier will not live a full life due to this! Please stop this madness, we are in the 21st century! Go buy a chicken at the supermarket, stop harming our wildlife!"

Δεν είναι μόνο τα αμπελοπούλια που πέφτουν θύματα της παράνομης παγίδευσης με την χρήση ξοβέργων και δικτύων. 153 είδη της κυπριακής πτηνοπανίδας πέφτουν θύματα της βάναυσης αυτής μεθόδου, τα μισά εκ των οποίων θεωρούνται απειλούμενα.

Βλέπουμε ένα Ασπροσιάχινο (παγκοσμίως κινδυνέυoν είδος) πιασμένο σε ξόβεργο. Η επιβίωση του Αρπροσιάχινου αυτού είναι πλέον αμφίβολη, καθώς η ζημιά που προκάλεσε το ξόβεργο στο φτέρωμα του θα επηρεάσουν την ικανότητα πτήσης του, και άρα την ικανότητα του να κυνηγήσει και να μεταναστεύσει.

Photos  25 of March 2016 at Cape Greco by George Konstantinou

Eleonora's falcon (Falco eleonorae) (Gene, 1839) - Μαυροπετρίτης - Μαυρομμάτης - Cyprus

See also

List of Cyprus birds of prey on this blog - Λίστα Αρπαχτικών πουλιών της Κύπρου σε αυτό το ιστολόγιο

Cyprus birds of prey - Αρπαχτικά πουλιά της Κύπρου

Eleonora's falcon (Falco eleonorae) is a medium-sized falcon. It belongs to the hobby group, a rather close-knit number of similar falcons often considered a subgenus Hypotriorchis. The sooty falcon is sometimes considered its closest relative, but while they certainly belong to the same lineage, they do not seem to be close sister species. Eleonora's falcon is named after Eleonor of Arborea, national heroine of Sardinia

Eleonora's falcon is an elegant bird of prey, 36–42 cm (14–17 in) long with an 87–104 cm (34–41 in) wingspan. It is shaped like a large Eurasian hobby or a small slender peregrine falcon, with its long pointed wings, long tail and slim body. There are two colour morphs: The adult dark morph is all sooty brown, with black underwing coverts. The light morph is more like a juvenile Eurasian hobby, but has buff underparts, and also shows the contrast between the black underwing coverts and paler base to the flight feathers. Young birds are also like a large juvenile hobby, but the pale underparts contrast with darker wingtips and wing coverts. The call is a typical falcon kek-kek-kek.
This species breeds on islands in the Mediterranean particularly off Greece (where two-thirds of the world's population breeds), but also in the Canary Islands, Ibiza and off Spain, Italy, Croatia, Morocco and Algeria. Tilos Park is the breeding area for 10% of the world population of Eleonora's falcons. Six hundred and fifty pairs of this species breed on this island according to research conducted by the Hellenic Ornithological Society and the European Union LIFE-Nature program of Tilos. It is rare as a vagrant north of its range.
This is a long-distance migrant, wintering in Madagascar. The migration route has been recently discovered and, contrary to previous suggestions, it has been demonstrated by satellite telemetry to be inland through the African continent. Traditionally it has been suggested to be coastal, with birds from the western end of the Mediterranean flying to Suezbefore flying south down the Red Sea, and across the Horn of Africa. However, recent satellite tracked animals by Spanish and German researchers have demonstrated an inland route through the Sahara Desert, the equatorial rainforests until reaching Kenya and Mozambique. The total distance covered during the flight has reached up to 9,000 km (5,600 mi) for a single one-way trip.

It will take large insects, such as dragonflies, which are transferred from talons to beak and eaten in flight.

This species has a delayed breeding season, in late summer, because it is a specialist hunter of migrating birds which pass through the Mediterranean islands at this time of year. It captures small birds in flight, using its speed and aerobatic skills. Birds spend much time cruising along coastal cliffs with steady wingbeats watching for tired incoming migrants. During a fieldwork study in Mogador island,Morocco, researchers found that Eleonora's Falcons are imprisoning live prey in rock crevices for later consumption. This falcon is unique in that it is one of the few species that breeds during early autumn, feeding its chicks with other migratory birds that are in abundance that period. It is also one of the few falcon species that creates breeding colonies. It nests on coastal cliffs, laying up to four eggs.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Ο Μαυροπετρίτης είναι είδος γνήσιου  γερακιού (γένος Falco), που απαντά και στον ελληνικό χώρο.

Η επιστημονική ονομασία του είδους είναι Falco eleonorae και δεν περιλαμβάνει υποείδη (μονοτυπικό) αλλά, σύμφωνα με τους περισσότερους ορνιθολόγους, δύο χρωματικές φάσεις (colour phases) (βλ. Μορφολογία).

Ο μαυροπετρίτης είναι πλήρως μεταναστευτικό είδος του Παλαιού Κόσμου, με εξαιρετικά περιορισμένο και διακεκομμένο φάσμα κατανομής. Έρχεται να αναπαραχθεί στην ευρύτερη περιοχή της Μεσογείου, από την Κύπρο μέχρι τα Κανάρια και από την Κροατία μέχρι το ΒΔ. Μαρόκο και την Αλγερία, αλλά σε πολύ εξειδικευμένα οικοσυστήματα που περιορίζουν την εξάπλωσή του (βλ. Βιότοπος). Η Ελλάδα αποτελεί από τις σημαντικότερες αναπαραγωγικές επικράτειες του πτηνού, παγκοσμίως (βλ. Κατάσταση στην Ελλάδα).

Διαχειμάζει στην Αφρική πραγματοποιώντας πολύ μεγάλο ταξίδι, για να διαχειμάσει στην Μαδαγασκάρη, την Μοζαμβίκη και τα νησιά Μασκαρέν του Ινδικού.

Ο μαυροπετρίτης φωλιάζει δίπλα στη θάλασσα, στις απότομες ορθοπλαγιές νησιών ή παράκτιων ηπειρωτικών περιοχών, καθώς και σε επίπεδες ήσυχες νησίδες, με ασβεστολιθικό ή ηφαιστειακό γεωλογικό υπόβαθρο, με την προϋπόθεση να υπάρχουν σκιερές θέσεις για το μεγαλύτερο μέρος της ημέρας. Στους μήνες που προηγούνται της αναπαραγωγής, ορισμένοι ενήλικες κουρνιάζουν στα βράχια φωλιάσματος, ενώ άλλοι μένουν μακριά για αρκετές ημέρες.

Στην Ελλάδα, οι αναπαραγόμενοι πληθυσμοί -στο χρονικό διάστημα πριν φωλιάσουν- διασπείρονται σε ποικιλία ενδιαιτημάτων και, πέρα από τους «κλασσικούς» παράκτιους οικοτόπους, έχουν καταγραφεί μαυροπετρίτες σε οικοσυστήματα μακί, ορεινές δασικές θέσεις, ακόμη και σε ελαιώνες. Υψομετρικά, κινούνται από το επίπεδο της θάλασσας μέχρι τις υψηλές κορυφές. 

Από τη Βικιπαίδεια, την ελεύθερη εγκυκλοπαίδεια

Photos Episkopi , 10/10/ 2015 by George Konstantinou