I would Have to say, Even tho the Bald Eagle is amongst the top, I just adore The peregrine Falcon! I enjoy seeing them around, and their adaptations to City life is just amazing!






The Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus), sometimes formerly known in North America as Duck Hawk, is a medium-sized falcon about the size of a large crow: 380-530 millimetres (15-21 in) long. The English and scientific species names mean "wandering falcon", and refer to the fact that some populations are migratory. It has a wingspan of about 1 meter (40 in). Males weigh 570-710 grams; the noticeably larger females weigh 910-1190 grams.

The Peregrine Falcon is the fastest creature on the planet in its hunting dive, the stoop, in which it soars to a great height, then dives steeply at speeds in excess of 320 km/h (200mph) into either wing of its prey, so as not to harm itself on impact. In its stoop, the Peregrine Falcon attains the highest speed of any animal. The fastest speed recorded is 390 km/h (242.3 mph).

The fledglings practice the roll and the pumping of the wings before they master the actual stoop.
Peregrine Falcons feed almost exclusively on birds, such as doves, waterfowl and songbirds, but occasionally they hunt small mammals, including bats, rats, voles and rabbits. Insects and reptiles make up a relatively small proportion of their diet. On the other hand, a growing number of city-dwelling Falcons find that feral pigeons and Common Starlings provide plenty of food. Peregrine Falcons also eat their own chicks when starving.

Peregrine Falcons breed at approximately two or three years of age. They mate for life and return to the same nesting spot annually. Their courtship flight includes a mix of aerial acrobatics, precise spirals, and steep dives. The male passes prey it has caught to the female in midair. To make this possible, the female actually flies upside-down to receive the food from the male's talons. Females lay an average clutch of three or four eggs in a scrape, normally on cliff edges or, increasingly, on tall buildings or bridges. They occasionally nest in tree hollows or in the disused nest of other large birds.

The laying date varies according to locality, but is generally:
The females incubate the eggs for twenty-nine to thirty-two days at which point the eggs hatch. While the males also sometimes help with the incubation of the eggs, they only do so occasionally and for short periods.

Thirty-five to forty-two days after hatching, the chicks will fledge, but they tend to remain dependent on their parents for a further two months. The tiercel, or male, provides most of the food for himself, the female, and the chicks; the falcon, or female, stays and watches the young.

The average life span of a Peregrine Falcon is approximately eight to ten years, although some have been recorded to live until slightly more than twenty years of age.