Name:Falco vespertinus
Alias:Western red-legged falcon, blue swallow, blue eagle, red-legged kite, red-footed falcon
Outline:Bird of prey
Family:Falconiformes Falconidae Falco
length:28-33cm
Weight:130-164g
Life:12-16year
IUCN:LC
The Western Red-footed Falcon is a summer migratory bird in my country. It migrates in spring in early April to late May, and leaves in autumn in October-November. It often moves in pairs and small groups. It flies fast, can flap its wings, hover and glide in the air, and often perches on telephone wires or poles when resting.
The Western Red-footed Falcon is often noisy, especially when they move in groups or gather together at night before going to sleep. Their most common call is the high-pitched "kiou kiou kiou" of the male, and the softer and higher-pitched "kwee kwee kwee" of the female. The call is very similar to that of the Eupator Kestrel when flying, but the frequency is slightly lower. It makes faster calls when panicked.
The Western Red-footed Falcon is a small bird of prey. It flaps its wings rapidly when flying, occasionally gliding, and can also make a short stop in the air by flapping its wings rapidly. It mainly feeds on locusts, crickets, beetles, crickets, and various beetles. Sometimes it also preys on small vertebrates such as small birds, lizards, frogs, and mice.
The breeding season is from May to July. It usually does not build its own nest, but uses the nests of other birds such as crows and magpies. It also builds its own nest when there is no nest available. Usually nests are built in trees, sometimes in tree holes, rock edges and ground bushes. Each nest usually contains 3-4 eggs, occasionally as many as 5 or 6 and as few as 1-2. The eggs are white, densely covered with reddish brown or rusty red spots, and the size of the eggs is 32-42 mm × 26-31 mm. The male and female parents take turns incubating the eggs, and the female bird usually incubates the eggs at night and at the end of the incubation period. The incubation period is 21-28 days. The chicks are late-maturing, and after hatching, they are covered with white down feathers and weigh only 10-13 grams. When they are just hatched, they are mainly raised by the male bird, and the female bird also participates in the raising activities. After 26-27 days of nesting life, the chicks can leave the nest.