From: Donald Mathis
Newsgroups: alt.binaries.pictures.animals
Subject: Re: specified pics - Prairie Falcon (4)
Date: Thu, 11 Sep 1997 09:05:15 -0500
name="PrairieFalcon_04.JPG"

Daniel Lorbear wrote:
>
> Falcon, Hawks, other raptors, both flying and at rest.

--
Donald Mathis
San Antonio, Texas USA


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The prairie falcon (Falco mexicanus) is a medium-large sized falcon of western North America. It is about the size of a peregrine falcon or a crow, with an average length of 40 cm, wingspan of approximately 1 meter, and average weight of 720 g. As in all falcons, females are noticeably bigger than males. Though a separate species from the peregrine, the prairie falcon is basically an arid environment adaptation of the early peregrine falcon lineage, able to subsist on less food than the peregrine, and generally lighter in weight than a peregrine of similar wing span. Having evolved in a harsh desert environment with low prey density, the prairie falcon has developed into an aggressive and opportunistic hunter of a wide range of both mammal and bird prey.