Grey Falcon - Description

Description

Mainly grey upperparts and white underparts; darker on the tips of the flight feathers; yellow cere. Body length 30–45 cm; wingspan 85–95 cm; weight 350–600 g. Females larger. Grey Falcons are known to have a body length between 30–45 cm, making them a mid-sized bird. Females are generally larger in body size and wingspan. The wingspan of a male is less than 300mm and the tail length is less than 150mm. For the females, the wingspan is generally more than 305mm and the tail length is more than 150mm. The weight of the Grey Falcon also fluctuates with gender. The female weighs approximately 559 grams on average (and between 486 and 624g) and the male is 378 grams (and between 335 and 419g). The Grey Falcon has mostly grey upper body parts. It is heavy-shouldered with a black streak under the eyes. The wingtips are also black and the cere, eye ring and feet are a very vibrant yellow. The tail of the bird is grey and faintly barred like the underwings. The lower section of the body is white with fine dark streaks and on younger birds this feature is darker and more distinctive. The call of the Grey Falcon is Hoarse chattering, clucking and whining sounds. It is similar to the Peregrine Falcon and has a loud, slow ‘kek-kek-kek’ or ‘kak-ak-ak-ak’ but is slower, deeper and harsher than the Peregrine Falcon.