Laggar Falcon Falco jugger Scientific name definitions

39–46 cm; 525–850 g (sexes combined); wingspan 88–107 cm (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Large, slender, long-winged and longish-tailed falcon with long, narrow dark moustachial streak , white supercilia, buff-tipped tail, rusty-white to rufous crown (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); similar to allopatric F. biarmicus in plumage, structure and behaviour, but usually somewhat darker and browner; greyish-brown above , white below with some dark flank  and belly markings. F. cherrug, which reaches parts of present species' range in winter, is larger and heavier, broader-winged, with whiter crown/nape, practically no moustachial and paler brown upperparts (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Female up to 21% larger than male, but averages just 8% (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Bare parts: eyes dark brown, cere and orbital ring yellow (pale grey-green in juvenile), and legs yellow (initially grey or greenish grey in juvenile) (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Juvenile  almost uniform blackish brown on underparts, with much browner crown and nape, eyestripe and cheeks (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); first-year birds have intermediate plumage  but are more like adult (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Pakistan E throughout most of India and Nepal (terai) to N Bangladesh, also W Myanmar; absent from extreme S India. Occurs also locally in NE Afghanistan (3 Ayé, R., M. Schweizer, and T. Roth (2012). Birds of Central Asia. Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Afghanistan. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ) and possibly SE Iran.

Arid to semi-arid open country, including dry woodland, cultivated areas, villages, and even cities; often seen perched on power poles and buildings. Mostly recorded from sea-level to 1000 m, but to 1980 m in Nepal (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ) and exceptionally to 4360 m in Ladakh, India (4 Pfister, O. (2001). Birds recorded during visits to Ladakh, India from 1994 to 1997. Forktail. 17: 81–90. Close ).

Mostly sedentary. Partial local migrations reported in India, and old specimens from S Turkmenistan and NE Uzbekistan hint either at formerly wider range or potential for much wider wandering (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Mostly birds, including doves and gamebirds, but principally passerines (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); also wide variety of small mammals, including bats; reptiles  , particularly lizards (5 Baindur, A. (2009). The raptors and the agamid. Indian Birds. 5(1): 11-13. Close ); and large insects, especially grasshoppers and beetles (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); will take domestic fowl on occasions. Hunts from exposed perch , launching swift, low-level attack flight when prey sighted. Occasionally hovers briefly, if prey goes under cover, but not reported to stoop from high up in typical style of F. peregrinus. Prey captured either in the air or on ground. Cooperative hunting of pair reported, with the birds taking it in turns to harry prey (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Drawn-out, shrill "whi-ee-ee" or even more prolonged "whi-eee-eee" given in excitement or alarm around nest (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). No further information (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).

Laying Jan–Apr, or Feb–May in N of range (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Nests in variety of sites: old stick nests of other birds, especially corvids and other raptors, without adding any material (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); in trees c. 5–15 m above ground (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ); often near humans, on buildings, spires, towers, or even castles; on cliffs or rocky outcrops, sometimes on bare ledges; even in holes in earth banks; reports of present species constructing nests are certainly erroneous. Spectacular display flights include mutual soaring, rapid pursuit of female by male, and male diving on female. Usually 3–4 eggs (rarely two or five); size range 46·5–54·7 mm × 36·2–39·4 mm; both sexes incubate; incubation and fledging periods unrecorded. Both parents hunt, female only when chicks older; female alone feeds chicks.

Not globally threatened. CITES I. Currently considered Near Threatened. Uncommon to rare and local. Population in 1970s estimated at 10,000–25,000 pairs (6 Cade, T. J. (1982). The Falcons of the World. Collins, London, UK and Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY, USA. Close ), but now perhaps just 10,000 mature individuals (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ). Declines noted in Pakistan and NW India probably resulted from reduction in prey availability as result of extensive cultivation; species apparently is not prized for falconry, although it is trapped in Pakistan (7 Kylänpää, J. (2000). Birds of Dera Ismail Khan District of North West Frontier Province in Pakistan. Forktail 16:15–28. Close ), perhaps during attempts to capture the more desirable F. cherrug. Considered scarce in Nepal (1 Ferguson-Lees, J., and D. A. Christie (2001). Raptors of the World. Christopher Helm, London, UK. Close ).