Falconidae is a family of diurnalbirds of prey and includes caracaras, laughing falcon, forest falcons, falconets, pygmy falcons, falcons and kestrels. They are small to medium-sized birds of prey, ranging in size from the black-thighed falconet, which can weigh as little as 35 grams (1.2 oz), to the gyrfalcon, which can weigh as much as 1,735 grams (61.2 oz). They have strongly hooked bills, sharply curved talons and excellent eyesight. The plumage is usually composed of browns, whites, chestnut, black and grey, often with barring of patterning. There is little difference in the plumage of males and females, although a few species have some sexual dimorphism in boldness of plumage. They differ from other Falconiformes in killing with their beaks instead of their talons. They have a "tooth" on the side of their beak for the purpose.
They are classified in eleven genera and 67 species of which two are extinct.
Conservation statuses listed for each species follow the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species. The symbol indicates that the species's population trend is positive, the symbol indicates that the species's population trend is negative, the symbol indicates that the species's population is stable, and the ? symbol indicates that the species's population trend is unknown. Population trends are based on the Red List of Threatened Species. The super-scripted "IUCN" tag is a link to that species's Red List of Threatened Species page. If a species has taxonomic synonyms, a list of these is provided in the "Scientific name" column, underneath the binomial name and author. If a species has subspecies, a list of these is provided in the "Common name" column, underneath the common name.
Traditionally, subfamily Polyborinae comprises caracaras and forest falcons which are principally birds of South and Central America.[2] They are classified in six genera and 18 species of which one is extinct since 1906.[3] Unlike the Falcofalcons in the same family, caracaras in the five relevant genera are not fast-flying aerial hunters, but are comparatively slow and are often scavengers (a notable exception being the red-throated caracara).
Forest falcons are endemic to the Americas. They are classified as 7 species in one genus. They are adapted for agility in thick cover rather than outright speed in the open air. They have short wings, long tails, and extraordinarily acute hearing. While generally visually inconspicuous, their songs are commonly heard.[4]
Falcons are roughly divisible into three or four groups. The first contains the kestrels (probably excepting the American kestrel); the second group contains slightly larger (on average) and more elegant species, the hobbies and relatives. Third are the peregrine falcon and its relatives: variably sized powerful birds which also have a black malar area (except some very light color morphs), and often a black cap also. Very similar to these and sometimes included therein are the four or so species of hierofalcons (literally, "hawk-falcons").
^M. c. cordata southern Costa Rica through South America to the north of the Amazon; M. c. chimachima from south of the Amazon to northern Argentina
^M. c. chimango from southern Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay to central Argentina and Chile; M. c. temucoensis from southern Argentina and Chile to Tierra del Fuego
^M. r. guerilla from Mexico to Nicaragua; M. r. interstes from Costa Rica to western Colombia and Ecuador; M. r. zonothrax from eastern Colombia and northern Venezuela south to Bolivia; M. r. concentricus southern Venezuela, the Guianas, Amazonia; M. r. ruficollis eastern Brazil, Paraguay, north Argentina; M. r. olrogi northwestern Argentina
^M. s. naso from Mexico to northwestern Peru; M. s. semitorquatus from eastern Colombia through the Guianas and Brazil to northern Argentina
^Erroneously called "snake hawk", since it is not a hawk
^H. c. cachinnans from Mexico through central and eastern South America to northern Argentina; H. c. fulvescens from eastern Panama and northwestern Colombia to northwestern Peru
^P. s. castanonotus from southern Sudan and Ethiopia to central Tanzania; P. s. semitorquatus from southern Angola to northwestern South Africa
^P. i. insignis western and central Myanmar; P. i. cinereiceps southern Myanmar and northwestern Thailand; P. i. harmandi Laos, Vietnam, and Cambodia
^It is sometimes placed in its own monotypic genus Neohierax
^M. c. caerulescens northern India and Nepal; M. c. burmanicus from Myanmar to Indochina
^M. e. erythrogenys northern Philippines; M. e. meridionalis southern Philippines
^F. t. tinnunculus from Europe and northwestern Africa to Siberia; F. t. perpallidus from northeastern Siberia to northeastern China and Korea;F. t. interstinctus from Himalayas to Japan and Indochina; F. t. objurgatus southern India, Sri Lanka; F. t. canariensis Madeira and western Canary Islands; F. t. dacotiae eastern Canary Islands; F. t. neglectus northern Cape Verde Island; F. t. alexandri southern Cape Verde Island; F. t. rupicolaeformis northeastern Africa and Arabia; F. t. archeri Socotra Island, Somalia, northeastern Kenya; F. t. rufescens from West Africa to Ethiopia south to northern Angola and Tanzania
^Falco rupicolus is split from F. tinnunculus ( Hockey, Dean & Ryan, eds. 2005)
^F. n. newtoni Madagascar; F. n. aldabranus Aldabra and Anjouan Islands
^F. m. moluccensis northern and southern Moluccas; F. m. microbalius Java to Lesser Sundas, Sulawesi and Tanimbar Islands
^F. c. baru Snow Mountains (New Guinea); F. c. cenchroides Australia, Tasmania, Lord Howe Island, Norfolk Islands
^F. s. sparverius Alaska and Canada through the USA to western Mexico; F. s. paulus southeastern USA; F. s. peninsularis northwestern Mexico; F. s. tropicalis southern Mexico to northern Honduras; F. s. nicaraguensis northwesternw Honduras, Nicaragua; F. s. sparverioides Bahamas, Cuba; F. s. dominicensis Hispaniola; F. s. caribaearum Puerto Rico to Grenada (West Indies); F. s. brevipennis Aruba, Curaçao, Bonaire (Netherlands Antilles); F. s. isabellinus eastern Venezuela, the Guianas, northern Brazil;F. s. ochraceus eastern Colombia, northwestern Venezuela; F. s. caucae western Colombia; F. s. aequatorialis northern Ecuador; F. s. peruvianus southwestern Ecuador, Peru, northern Chile; F. s. cinnamominus southeastern Peru to Paraguay, southeastern Brazil (Rio Grande do Sul) and Tierra del Fuego; F. s. fernandensis Alejandro Selkirk and Juan Fernandez Islands (Chile); F. s. cearae southern Brazil
^F. r. fieldi northeastern Ethiopia, northern Somalia, northern Kenya; F. r. arthuri central and southern Kenya, northeastern Tanzania; F. r. rupicoloides southern Angola to southwestern Zambia south to South Africa
^F. c. chicquera southeastern Iran through India to Bangladesh; F. c. ruficollis Senegal to western Ethiopia, eastern Africa to northeastern Zimbabwe and central Mozambique; F. c. horsbrughi Namibia, Botswana, western Zimbabwe and northern, northwestern South Africa
^F. f. septentrionalis southwwstern USA to Honduras; F. f. femoralis Nicaragua through South America to Tierra del Fuego; F. f. pichinchae Andes from Colombia to northern Chile and northwestern Argentina
^F. c. subaesalon Iceland; F. c. aesalon Europe to northwestern Siberia; F. c. insignis northern and central Siberia; F. c. pacificus northeastern Asia; F. c. pallidus steppes of western and central Asia; F. c. lymani mountains of eastern and central Asia; F. c. columbarius Alaska to Newfoundland to northern USA; F. c. suckleyi southeastern Alaska to northern Washington (USA); F. c. richardsonii central and southern Canada to northern central USA
^F. r. petoensis Mexico to western Ecuador; F. r. rufigularis eastern Colombia through the Guianas to southern Brazil and northeastern Argentina; F. r. ophryophanes eastern Bolivia to southern Brazil, Paraguay and northwestern Argentina
^F. s. subbuteo Europe to Japan to northern India and central China; F. s. streichi Myanmar to southern China and northern Indochina
^F. l. hanieli Lesser Sundas; F. l. longipennis southwestern and southeeastern Australia, Tasmania; F. l. murchisonianus Australia except southwestern and southeastern
^F. b. novaeguineae central and eastern New Guinea, coastal northern Australia; F. b. berigora Australia (except coastal north) and Tasmania
^F. b. feldeggii Italy to Turkey, Azerbaijan and northwestern Iran; F. b. erlangeri northwestern Africa; F. b. tanypterus northeastern Africa to Arabia, Israel and Iraq; F. b. abyssinicus southern Mauritania to Ethiopia and Somalia south to Cameroon and northern Kenya; F. b. biarmicus Democratic Republic of the Congo to southern Kenya south to South Africa
^F. c. cherrug central Europe to southern central Siberia and northern Kazakhstan; F. c. coatsi central Asia to southern Siberia and northern China; F. c. hendersoni western and southern Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan; F. c. milvipes Himalayas to Tibet
symbol indicates that the species's population trend is positive, the 
symbol indicates that the species's population trend is negative, the 
symbol indicates that the species's population is stable, and the 
symbol indicates that the species's population trend is unknown. Population trends are based on the Red List of Threatened Species. The super-scripted "IUCN" tag is a link to that species's Red List of Threatened Species page. If a species has taxonomic synonyms, a list of these is provided in the "Scientific name" column, underneath the binomial name and author. If a species has subspecies, a list of these is provided in the "Common name" column, underneath the common name.
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