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> Environment   print button email button  Wednesday, Jan. 10,
2007   Peregrine falcon  * Japanese name: Hayabusa * Scientific
name: Falco peregrinus * Description: Powerful and majestic
birds, peregrine falcons are as large as a crow, some 50-cm long
with a 1-meter wingspan. They have tapered, blue-gray wings, a
short tail, yellow legs, black bars on their backs and pale
underbellies. There is a black "mustache" on the face. The
underside of the wings -- the view you are most likely to see --
are white with black stripes and spots. The bill is sharp and
hooked. They are silent apart from a sharp "kek-kek-kek" when on
the nest. * Where to find them: Along rocky sea cliffs, in
mountains and around marshlands where other birds are likely to
be massed, from Hokkaido to Honshu. However, they have
relatively recently adapted to urban life, and pairs have been
found living on the top of high-rise buildings in city centers.
In natural conditions, the n