The Barbary falcon (Falco peregrinus pelegrinoides) is a non-migratory subspecies of the peregrine falcon found from the Canary Islands eastwards across some parts of North Africa to the Middle East. It was formerly often treated as a distinct species Falco pelegrinoides; when so treated, it also included the central Asian peregrine falcon subspecies Falco peregrinus babylonicus as a subspecies (Falco pelegrinoides babylonicus).

Description

The Barbary falcon is a bird of semi-desert and dry open hills. It typically lays its eggs in cliff-ledge nests.

It is similar to other subspecies of the peregrine falcon, but smaller at length with a wingspan of . It has characteristic plumage, and adults can be recognised from peregrines. Some regard it as a distinct species since it is specialised to a desert environment. Recently, it has been found to be genetically similar to other subspecies of the peregrine falcon, so it is now considered a subspecies of that.

The female is larger than the male. It resembles its relative in general structure. Female Barbary falcons are as large as male peregrine falcons.

Adults have paler grey-blue upperparts than the peregrine falcon and often have a buff wash to the barred underparts, whereas the larger species has a whiter background colour. The nape is rufous, but this is difficult to see.

Sexes are similar, apart from size, but the young birds have brown upperparts and streaked underparts. The streaking is lighter than in the juvenile peregrine falcon.

The call is a high-pitched "rek-rek-rek".

The Barbary falcon also bears some resemblance to the lanner falcon, but can be distinguished from that species at rest by its size and in the head-pattern, flight, flight action and underwing pattern.

Distribution

The Barbary falcon is native to parts of North and East Africa (Algeria, the Canary Islands, Egypt, Eritrea, Libya, Morocco, Niger, Nigeria, Sudan, Somalia and Tunisia), Israel, Syria, Jordan, and Saudi Arabia. Birds formerly included in the barbary falcon in central and southwest Asia, particularly in Afghanistan, westernmost China, the far north of India, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Oman, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, the United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan are of the closely similar peregrine falcon subspecies F. p. babylonicus.

Taxonomy

alt=Close up image of Barbary Falcon perched on top of a rusty metal structure|thumb|Barbary falcon on Lanzarote, Canary Islands

The Barbary falcon differs in appearance from the peregrine falcon according to Gloger's rule. The genetic distance is slight and the species form a close-knit and somewhat paraphyletic group in DNA sequence analyses, and all the major taxonomic authorities now consider it conspecific. They differ more in behaviour, ecology and anatomy than usual for conspecifics. They are able to produce fertile hybrids, but they are generally allopatric and only co-occur during breeding season in small areas such as the Maghreb, the Punjab, Khorasan and possibly the Mongolian Altai and there is clear evidence of assortative mating, with hybridization hardly ever occurring under natural conditions. In short, though they occupy adjacent territories, they breed at different times of the year and Barbary falcons virtually never breed with peregrine falcons in nature.

Assuming a genetic distance of 2% in hierofalcons the 0.6–0.7% genetic distance in the peregrine falcon-Barbary falcon ("peregrinoid") complex The Barbary falcon is one of the rare cases that may arguably be considered a species under the biological species concept, but certainly not under the phylogenetic species concept, rather than the other way around as usual. This case demonstrates that what makes a "species" is not only its descent, but also what happens to a population in the course of evolution, how it adapts and how this affects its reproductive isolation (or lack thereof) from sister taxa.

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"The two races of the Barbary Falcon, pelegrinoides and babylonicus, are often regarded as subspecies of F. peregrinus (Brown and Amadon 1968, Stresemann and Amadon 1979, Brown et al. 1982, del Hoyo et al. 1994), but many recent authors have followed Vaurie (1961), who treated them as a separate species. Birds breeding on the Canary Islands show haplotypes of both F. p. pelegrinoides and F. peregrinus brookei, according to a preliminary study carried out on Fuerteventura Island (Amengual et al. 1996).

Wink et al. (2000) also found low genetic variation (<0.6% sequence divergence) in the peregrinus/pelegrinoides group, with the variation being about the same between unquestioned peregrine races and between them and pelegrinoides. If these findings are valid, the systematic consequences would be to either treat all of these forms as subspecies of F. peregrinus and F. pelegrinoides as a subspecies of F. peregrinus, or to give species rank to all of them (Wink et al. op cit.).

Wink et al. (2004) found that the DNA sequence of the Black Shaheen (F. peregrinus peregrinator) is almost identical to that of the races peregrinus, calidus, minor, and F. pelegrinoides, which is concordant with the conclusions of Kemp and Crowe (1993), based on a morphometric analysis."

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Conservation and threats

The population of Barbary Falcons was once considered endangered but is now increasing. In the Canary Islands the population of breeding pairs increased from seven breeding pairs in 1988, restricted to the eastern islands, to 75 breeding pairs in 2006 across the entire archipelago. The species was thought to be extinct in Tenerife but a 2007 study found 26 breeding pairs on the island with potential for further increase indicated by suitable, unoccupied cliffs on the island. This increase has been attributed to increased urbanisation as the falcons primary food source is the domestic pigeon. Pigeon racing is a popular sport on the Canary Islands, leading the falcons to be persecuted by local pigeon racers. This human-wildlife conflict is exacerbated by misinformation such as the widespread belief that the falcons are not native to the islands.

Notes

References

  • Helbig, A.J.; Seibold, I.; Bednarek, W.; Brüning, H.; Gaucher, P.; Ristow, D.; Scharlau, W.; Schmidl, D. & Wink, M. (1994): Phylogenetic relationships among falcon species (genus Falco) according to DNA sequence variation of the cytochrome b gene. In: Meyburg, B.-U. & Chancellor, R.D. (eds.): Raptor conservation today: 593–599.
  • Snow, D. W.; Perrins, Christopher M.; Doherty, P. & Cramp, S. (1998): The complete birds of the western Palaearctic on CD-ROM. Oxford University Press.
  • White, C. M. (1994): 60. Peregrine Falcon. In: del Hoyo, J.; Elliott, A. & Sargatal, J. (eds.): Handbook of Birds of the World, Volume 2 (New World Vultures to Guineafowl): 274–275, plate 28. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.
  • White, C. M.; Olsen, P. D. & Kiff, L. F. (1994): Family Falconidae. In: del Hoyo, J.; Elliott, A. & Sargatal, J. (editors): Handbook of Birds of the World, Volume 2 (New World Vultures to Guineafowl): 216–275, plates 24–28. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona.
  • Wink, M. & Sauer-Gürth, H. (2000): Advances in the molecular systematics of African raptors. In: Chancellor, R.D. & Meyburg, B.-U. (eds): Raptors at Risk: 135–147. WWGBP/Hancock House, Berlin/Blaine.
  • Wink, M.; Seibold, I.; Lotfikhah, F. & Bednarek, W. (1998): Molecular systematics of holarctic raptors (Order Falconiformes). In: Chancellor, R.D., Meyburg, B.-U. & Ferrero, J.J. (eds.): Holarctic Birds of Prey: 29–48. Adenex & WWGBP.
  • Wink, M.; Döttlinger, H.; Nicholls, M. K. & Sauer-Gürth, H. (2000): Phylogenetic relationships between Black Shaheen (Falco peregrinus peregrinator), Red-naped Shaheen (F. pelegrinoides babylonicus) and Peregrines (F. peregrinus). In: Chancellor, R.D. & Meyburg, B.-U. (eds): Raptors at Risk: 853–857. WWGBP/Hancock House, Berlin/Blaine.
  • Wink, M.; Sauer-Gürth, H.; Ellis, D. & Kenward, R. (2004): Phylogenetic relationships in the Hierofalco complex (Saker-, Gyr-, Lanner-, Laggar Falcon). In: Chancellor, R.D. & Meyburg, B.-U. (eds.): Raptors Worldwide: 499–504. WWGBP, Berlin.
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