Falcons | Falconidae

Valken | Halcones

In the true falcons the cutting edge of the upper mandible carries a sharp tooth that fits a notch in the lower: they kill with a bite through the neck, not with the crushing power of the foot as hawks do. The wing is long and pointed and the beat stiff and rowing. In the region American Kestrel is the smallest and most widespread species; it hunts lizards, insects and small birds from a lookout perch. Merlin and Peregrine Falcon occur mainly as migrants and winter visitors from North America and hunt shorebirds and doves. On Trinidad and Tobago Bat Falcon hunts bats and birds at dusk. Crested Caracara is different: it spends much time walking on the ground, also takes carrion and builds a stick nest. The true falcons make no nest but lay on a ledge, in a cavity or in an old nest. The eggs are buff and densely covered with red-brown markings.