Eurasian hobby

    Falco subbuteo

Castilian: Alcotán europeo

Catalan: Falcó mostatxut

Gallego: Falcón pequeno

Euskera: Zuhaitz-belatza

CLASIFICACIÓN:

Orden: Falconiformes

Family: Falconidae

Migratory status: Summer resident

CONSERVATION STATUS:

On the National List of Threatened Species, it appears in the “Of Special Interest” category. In the 2004 edition of the Red Book of Spanish Birds (Libro Rojo de las Aves de España) it is listed as “Near Threatened”.

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THREATS

Loss of habitat due to fires, destruction of wooded areas, urbanisation in feeding areas, illegal hunting, electrical cables and pesticides.

Length / size: 29-33 cm / 74-83 cm

Identification: Small, slender falcon with long wings. Its plumage is dark grey on its back, flight feathers and crown, while its breast is light-coloured with dark vertical streaks. Under its “thighs” and on its covert feathers it has reddish tones; its cheeks are light-coloured and its facial disc and moustache are dark.

Song: It makes a high-pitched "keeoo keeoo keeoo" sound with varying rhythms.

Diet: It feeds on insects such as grasshoppers, beetles, bees, locusts, and small birds such as swifts, swallows, and some bats.

Reproduction: It nests later than other birds of prey. It usually reuses the nests of crows or other medium-sized birds of prey; the eggs are laid in June, and the female incubates the eggs for the most time. The chicks are fed small birds by the mother while the male goes out to hunt.

HABITAT

It occupies forests, grasslands, forest outskirts, etc., but it always remains near open areas, farmland, and wetlands where it can hunt.

DISTRIBUTION

In Spain: The largest populations are distributed throughout Castile and León, Navarre, La Rioja, Basque Country, Galicia, Cantabria and Asturias.

In Castile and León: It breeds in all the provinces, but the largest breeding concentrations are found in Burgos, León and Palencia.

Movements and migrations: It reaches the peninsula between April and early May, and returns by crossing the strait beginning in the last week of August.

POPULATION

In Spain: There is an estimated population of 2300-3000 breeding pairs (2003 data).

In Castile and León: There is an estimated population of 600-1000 breeding pairs.