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Falco vespertinus
– Near Threatened
Taxonomy
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Kingdom:
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ANIMALIA
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Phylum:
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CHORDATA
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Class:
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AVES
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Order:
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FALCONIFORMES
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Family:
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FALCONIDAE
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Scientific Name:
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Falco vespertinus
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Species Authority:
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Linnaeus, 1766
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Common Name/s:
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| English | — | RED-FOOTED FALCON |
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Assessment Information
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Red List Category & Criteria:
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NT ver 3.1 (2001)
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Year Assessed:
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2005
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Assessor/s:
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BirdLife International
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Evaluator/s:
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Butchart, S. (BirdLife International Red List Authority) & Burfield, I. (BirdLife International - European Division Office)
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Justification:
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Falco vespertinus breeds in eastern Europe and west, central and north-central Asia, with its main range from Belarus south to Hungary, northern Serbia and Montenegro, Romania, Moldova and east Bulgaria, eastward through Ukraine and northwest and south Russia and north Kazakhstan to extreme northwest China and the upper Lena river (Russia). It winters in southern Africa, from South Africa northwards to southern Kenya. It has a large global population estimated to be 300,000-800,000 individuals, but recent evidence suggests that it is undergoing large declines in parts of its range. The European population of 26,000-39,000 pairs (forming 25-49% of the global population) suffered a large decline during 1970-1990, and has continued to decline during 1990-2000, particularly in the key populations in Russia and Ukraine, with overall declines exceeding 30% in ten years (three generations). Declines have also been reported from eastern Siberia, where the species may have disappeared as a breeder from the Baikal region. In Hungary estimated populations have declined from 2,000-2,500 pairs in the late 1980s to 800-900 pairs based on surveys in 2003 and 2004, and in Bulgaria very few active colonies remain. However, populations in central Asia appear to be stable, with the species reported to be common in suitable habitats (especially in forest-steppe zone with Rook Corvus frugilegus colonies) in Kazakhstan, and no evidence of any population declines there. Populations in western Europe are also stable or undergoing increases3. The species breeds in open lowlands with trees and plenty of insects, on which it feeds, including steppe and forest-steppe, open woodland, cultivation and pastureland with tall hedgerows or fringing trees, agricultural areas with shelterbelts and, in the northeast, boggy areas and taiga edge. It is social, breeding in the old nest of another bird (most commonly C. frugilegus), but can be solitary. It is found from sea-level to c.300 m in the west, but to 1,500 m in Asia1. Threats include destruction of suitable nest sites and, more significantly, widespread use of pesticides affecting food supply. From 1980 to 1999 intensive poisoning of C. frugilegus in Hungary forced the species to change their nest site selection habits, and large colonies have nearly disappeared there as a result, with only 38% of the population breeding colonially6. As productivity is generally greater in larger colonies, further decreases may occur. Nearly qualifies as threatened under criteria A2bc+3bc.
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History:
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| 1988 | - | Lower Risk/least concern (BirdLife International 2004) |
| 1994 | - | Lower Risk/least concern (BirdLife International 2004) |
| 2000 | - | Lower Risk/least concern (BirdLife International 2000) |
| 2004 | - | Least Concern (BirdLife International 2004) |
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Geographic Range
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Range Description:
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Falco vespertinus breeds in eastern Europe and west, central and north-central Asia, with its main range from Belarus south to Hungary, northern Serbia and Montenegro, Romania, Moldova and east Bulgaria, eastward through Ukraine and northwest and south Russia and north Kazakhstan to extreme northwest China and the upper Lena river (Russia). It winters in southern Africa, from South Africa northwards to southern Kenya1. It has a large global population estimated to be 300,000-800,000 individuals1, but recent evidence suggests that it is undergoing large declines in parts of its range. The European population of 26,000-39,000 pairs (forming 25-49% of the global population) suffered a large decline during 1970-19902, and has continued to decline during 1990-2000, particularly in the key populations in Russia and Ukraine, with overall declines exceeding 30% in ten years (three generations)3. Declines have also been reported from eastern Siberia, where the species may have disappeared as a breeder from the Baikal region4,5. In Hungary estimated populations have declined from 2,000-2,500 pairs in the late 1980s to 800-900 pairs based on surveys in 2003 and 20046, and in Bulgaria very few active colonies remain7. However, populations in central Asia appear to be stable, with the species reported to be common in suitable habitats (especially in forest-steppe zone with Rook Corvus frugilegus colonies) in Kazakhstan, and no evidence of any population declines there8. Populations in western Europe are also stable or undergoing increases3. The species breeds in open lowlands with trees and plenty of insects, on which it feeds, including steppe and forest-steppe, open woodland, cultivation and pastureland with tall hedgerows or fringing trees, agricultural areas with shelterbelts and, in the northeast, boggy areas and taiga edge. It is social, breeding in the old nest of another bird (most commonly C. frugilegus), but can be solitary. It is found from sea-level to c.300 m in the west, but to 1,500 m in Asia1. Threats include destruction of suitable nest sites and, more significantly, widespread use of pesticides affecting food supply1. From 1980 to 1999 intensive poisoning of C. frugilegus in Hungary forced the species to change their nest site selection habits, and large colonies have nearly disappeared there as a result, with only 38% of the population breeding colonially6. As productivity is generally greater in larger colonies, further decreases may occur.
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Countries:
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Native:
Albania; Algeria; Angola; Armenia; Austria; Azerbaijan; Belarus; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Botswana; Bulgaria; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cameroon; Chad; Congo, The Democratic Republic of the; Croatia; Cyprus; Czech Republic; Côte d'Ivoire; Egypt; Estonia; Ethiopia; Finland; France; Georgia; Germany; Greece; Hungary; Iran, Islamic Republic of; Iraq; Israel; Italy; Jordan; Kazakhstan; Kenya; Kyrgyzstan; Latvia; Lesotho; Liberia; Libyan Arab Jamahiriya; Liechtenstein; Macedonia, the former Yugoslav Republic of; Malawi; Mali; Malta; Mauritania; Moldova, Republic of; Montenegro; Morocco; Namibia; Nigeria; Oman; Poland; Romania; Russian Federation; Rwanda; Senegal; Serbia; Slovakia; Slovenia; South Africa; Sudan; Sweden; Switzerland; Syrian Arab Republic; Tajikistan; Tanzania, United Republic of; Tunisia; Turkey; Turkmenistan; Ukraine; United Kingdom; Uzbekistan; Zambia; Zimbabwe
Vagrant:
Bahrain; Belgium; Benin; Central African Republic; Denmark; Djibouti; Gabon; Gambia; Ghana; Gibraltar; Ireland; Kuwait; Lebanon; Luxembourg; Netherlands; Niger; Norway; Portugal; Sao Tomé and Principe; Saudi Arabia; Seychelles; Somalia; Spain; Swaziland; Togo; Yemen
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Habitat and Ecology
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System:
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Terrestrial
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List of Habitats:
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| 1.1 | Forest - Boreal |
| 1.4 | Forest - Temperate |
| 4.4 | Grassland - Temperate |
| 5.4 | Wetlands (inland) - Bogs, Marshes, Swamps, Fens, Peatlands |
| 14.1 | Artificial/Terrestrial - Arable Land |
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Threats
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List of Threats:
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| 1.1 | Habitat Loss/Degradation - Agriculture (ongoing) |
| 6.2.1 | Pollution (affecting habitat and/or species) - Land pollution - Agriculture (ongoing) |
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Bibliography
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Bibliography:
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Bird Reference Citations. The numbers inserted in the text accounts above (usually in bold) refer to references. For further details on these references, click on the BirdLife International link above to go to the specific species account on the BirdLife web site. In some cases, particularly in the taxonomic notes, the references are cited using the author names. Details for these can be found on the BirdLife International web site at the following two places:
For References from A–L.
For References from M–Z. BirdLife International. 2000. Threatened Birds of the World. Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, U.K. BirdLife International. 2004 Threatened Birds of the World 2004. CD-ROM. BirdLife International, Cambridge, U.K. BirdLife International. 2005. Threatened Birds of the World 2005. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 30/04/2005.
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