Bird Album
Sooty Falcon
Falco concolor Temminck, 1825
250 gWeight
The sooty falcon (Falco concolor) is a medium-sized falcon, breeding from northeastern Africa to the southern Persian Gulf region, and wintering in East Africa (Mozambique, eastern South Africa) and Madagascar.
Busiest months: November · Most records: Madagascar, Mozambique, Tanzania
Where and when it's recorded
Sooty Falcon has been recorded at 118 of the 8,171 birding hotspots we track, in 21 countries and regions.
Records by month Southern Hemisphere
Where it's recorded most
- Dunes de DovelaMozambique54 records
- Ankarafantsika NPMadagascar33 records
- Ankarafantsika – Circuit CoquereliMadagascar29 records
More places
- Berenty ReserveMadagascar20 records
- Ankarafantsika Park HeadquartersMadagascar19 records
- Hurghada Sewage WorksEgypt18 records
- Ankarafantsika NP – Lac RavelobeMadagascar18 records
- Sharm el-Sheikh – New WTPEgypt13 records
- Zombitse-Vohibasia NPMadagascar13 records
- Parc de TsarasaotraMadagascar10 records
Countries and regions with the most records
eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.
About
The sooty falcon (Falco concolor) is a medium-sized falcon, breeding from northeastern Africa to the southern Persian Gulf region, and wintering in East Africa (Mozambique, eastern South Africa) and Madagascar.
Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia
Questions
How big is the Sooty Falcon?
The Sooty Falcon weighs around 250 g.
Where does the Sooty Falcon live?
Its breeding range: Africa, Palearctic: eastern Libya to southwestern Pakistan. It is most often recorded in Madagascar, Mozambique and Tanzania.
When is the best time to see the Sooty Falcon?
At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in November (Southern Hemisphere).
Is the Sooty Falcon endangered?
The IUCN Red List classifies the Sooty Falcon as Vulnerable.
What does the Sooty Falcon eat?
Main food: Vertebrate prey.
What family is the Sooty Falcon in?
It belongs to the family Caracaras, Falcons (Falconidae), order Falconiformes.
At a glance
- Weight
- 250 g
- Habitat
- Rocky terrain
- Diet
- Vertebrate prey
- Lifestyle
- Feeds in the air
- Migration
- Migratory
- Conservation
- Vulnerable
More measurements
- Wing
- 269 mm
- Tail
- 124 mm
- Bill
- 20 mm
- Tarsus
- 34 mm
Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.
Range
Africa, Palearctic: eastern Libya to southwestern Pakistan
Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2
Classification
- Order
- Falconiformes
- Family
- Caracaras, Falcons Falconidae
- Genus
- Falco
Other birds in the genus Falco
Lesser KestrelFalco naumanni
Common KestrelFalco tinnunculus
Rock KestrelFalco rupicolus
Malagasy KestrelFalco newtoni
Mauritius KestrelFalco punctatus
Seychelles KestrelFalco araeus
Spotted KestrelFalco moluccensis
Nankeen KestrelFalco cenchroides
American KestrelFalco sparverius
Greater KestrelFalco rupicoloides
Fox KestrelFalco alopex
Grey KestrelFalco ardosiaceus
Download illustration
Free to use with credit: “Illustration: Bird Album (birdalbum.com)”. Drawn by AI from a reference photo by משה נאמן. ↗
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