Saker Falcon - a bird of prey, it belongs to the falcon. They call it differently: rorog, itelgi, itelge. Description of Saker Falcon birds will be discussed in this article.
Basic data
Saker Falcon is a strong bird. It has a body 47-57 cm in length, the size of the wingspan is 110-130 cm. The bird weighs 80-1300 grams.
The plumage of the saker can be of different colors, often this feature is individual. The head is usually light brown in color with dark mottled lines. The chest is colored light, it has bright veins. The stomach is white, the throat is light. On a dark brown back, pale stripes. The beak is blue, black on the tip, the legs are light colored, the wax is yellow.
Saker Falcon is a bird whose lifestyle is similar to many winged predators. The features of the life of birds will be discussed below.
Nutrition and Hunting
Saker Falcon - a bird that prefers to eat ground squirrels. Also hunts wild pigeons. The predator eats hares, representatives of passerines, pikas, marmots, lizards. Such behavior favorably affects the condition of agricultural land, because the saker feeds mainly on rodent pests.
The bird hunts on the outskirts of the forest, as well as in the steppes and forest-steppe. For hunting, the bird chooses open places where you can hide on trees or on rocks and look for prey in the same way. Hunting takes place during horizontal flight. The saker does not fall on the prey from above, as other winged predators do.
People highly appreciate the falcon saker bird as a trapper. She has no equal during the steppe and desert hunting. Saker falcon is used for sports and commercial hunting. The behavior of birds combines the habits of falcons and hawks. Saker Falcon is characterized by maneuverable flight. Moreover, the predator hunts in the open field, and among thickets of shrubs, and in open woodlands. He, like a hawk, knows how to chase a victim. Like a falcon, it can dive for prey from above.
The saker has a long wide tail, which allows it to fly highly maneuverable.
Habitat
Saker falcon bird lives in Central Asia. Species of these birds are often found in Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Krasnoyarsk, Irkutsk, Transbaikalia. Saker falcon can be found in Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Iran, China.
In winter, those populations that live in the North fly to Ethiopia, Arabia, and China. Those Saker Falcons that inhabit southern areas, as a rule, do not fly away from their usual places.
Saker Falcons are not found at all in the taiga, humid tundra and in those places where there are no trees and rocks. Nor are they where their favorite food and substrates for building nests are missing.
The number of birds is low in all areas of habitat. Consider the most famous species of saker fowl. A bird habitat will also be presented.
Ordinary view
This is a representative of a brown color with orange feathers at the edges and a saturated color of the tartar. The head is lighter, grayish-brown in color, with dark spots. Abdomen is light, there are spots on it. There is no pattern on the sides and undertones.
An ordinary Saker Falcon lives in the forest-steppe of Kazakhstan, found in the northern desert territories.
Siberian variety
Brown bird with buffy-red splashes. The nails have a gray color. The head is lighter in color, reddish, mottled. The belly is white-buffy, with light veins. The patterns on the sides and around the paws are not very pronounced.
It lives in Altai, for the winter flies to the southeast of Kazakhstan.
Mongolian view
The Mongolian saker has a brown color with dim stripes. The head is lighter. On the sides and "pants" there is a pattern of spots and stripes.
Lives on the Tien Shan.
Turkestan variety
This bird has a bright color and a red-brick shade on its head. The back is dark brown, with a gray coating. The back and wings are decorated with light transverse patterns.
The bird lives in the south of Kazakhstan, on the mountain slopes of the Tien Shan.
Aralocaspian species
The color of the bird on the back is light brownish with light stripes. The tail is painted in a blue color. On the "pants" longitudinal strips of bright color.
It lives in Mangyshlak.
Altai variety
Large bird similar to Northern Gyrfalcon. It is painted in a deep brown color, on the back and nadhvost - dark gray. The head is darker, the sides and “pants” are decorated with a pattern of transverse stripes.
It lives in the Altai mountains, on the Tien Shan, in the Tarbagatai region of Buryatia.
Marriage
Females and males of the Saker Falcon do not differ from each other either in size or in color. The mating season begins in April. Those couples who hibernated together begin egg laying earlier than the rest. They can lay eggs by the end of March. Late masonry (in the summer months) is explained by unsuccessful natural conditions and cataclysms.
Monogamy is inherent in a bird. Couples build nests on the surfaces of rocks, in hilly places. They can also appropriate abandoned nests of other birds. Some sakers prefer to nest in trees. The construction process does not bring the bird pleasure, and without desire it fulfills it. Prefers to occupy the old nest. Often a couple has several old nests in its arsenal, which they use alternately.
One clutch consists of 3-5 eggs of red color with dark speckles. The female hatches eggs for a month. The male rarely replaces her in hatching. Chicks can die due to hunger. If the male cannot feed the family, the female throws the nest.
Birds hatch from eggs in late May or early summer. By the end of the first summer month, they are already able to overcome miniature distances. To defend themselves from enemies, the chicks fall on their backs and defend themselves with their paws.
In the nest, the babies live the first weeks after hatching. Parents look after them. Then the chicks try to fly out of the nest. At two months they already know how to fly. At the same time, they develop the ability to hunt. Parents do not specifically teach them these skills.
Nomads of young birds begin in August, before the onset of autumn migrations, the chicks already have time to fly out of the nests in different directions.
The period of sexual readiness is fixed by one year.
Birds live 18-20 years, cases of residence up to 30 years are recorded.
Entertaining facts
Snapper bird of prey in our time is on the verge of extinction. These birds are listed in the Red Book. In 2005, there were 8,500 individuals worldwide. The figure is extremely low. Human activity is the cause of the extinction of birds. Chicks are caught to participate in falconry. Thousands of unique birds are sold in illegal Arab markets, despite the fact that the saker is a bird from the Red Book.
The following facts also affect extinction:
- the destruction of feathered nests, including when sawing down poles of power lines;
- the use of harmful chemicals for rodents, which the bird uses in its diet;
- death on power lines;
- hunting for Saker Falcons of other predators (owl, for example);
- adverse climatic conditions.
To save birds on the globe, the authorities are taking various bird protection measures. The customs service counteracts the smuggling of birds. On power lines special protective devices are installed.
In the reserve Galichya Gora in the Lipetsk region since 1990, saker chicks have been bred. The reserve was created specifically for the purpose of rearing these rare birds. Specialists manage to get feathered chicks in an amount much greater than in the wild. The grown chicks are released into their natural habitat.
Saker Falcons are used to getting food far from their nests. This circumstance is used by other birds. They settle near the nests of Saker Falcons, where predators themselves do not touch them, while other birds are afraid to fly up due to the proximity of Saker Falcons.
Saker Falcon is known since the time of Genghis Khan. It was one of the favorite birds of the eastern hunters. No wonder in the East she was considered a cult sacred bird. In other regions, preference was given to other representatives of falcons.
In Russia, the capture of birds is prohibited. Such actions are not welcomed by law. Fans of falconry need to contact specialized nurseries, where it is possible to purchase a saker with all the necessary documents.