Scientific name: Falco eleonorae Gene, 1839
Bird group: Birds-of-prey
Field characters. Length 36-42 cm; wingspan 90-105 cm. In silhouette resembles Hobby but larger with longer tail and wings. Two colour morphs. Dark morph uniform dark brown with paler patches on breast; sometimes entirely slate-grey. Pale morph with slate-grey or dark brown upperparts, white throat and sides of head, broad, black-brown moustachial stripe, and dark-streaked body. Both morphs with contrasting pale line across base of flight-feathers on dark underwing. Cere pale yellow or whitish; legs yellow. Juvenile browner than pale morph adult, with underwing and underbody less boldly marked; legs pale green. Combination of slow foraging flight and long periods of gliding over sea or cliffs is typical. Breeds late in summer, so that young can profit from small migrants.
Voice. In flight "kyair kyair kyair", sometimes repeated rapidly.
Distribution. Scarce and local summer visitor.
Habitat. Breeding colonies located on sea-cliffs and offshore rock stacks.
Food. Hunts for large insects and small birds, catching prey in feet during flight. Crepuscular hunter. In late summer and in autumn it feeds mainly on migrant birds.