Sakers have no known predators in the wild, except humans.
Known Predators:
Sakers exhibit great variation in color and pattern, ranging from a fairly uniform chocolate brown color to a cream or straw base with brown bars or streaks to brown-eyed leucistic individuals, which are especially prized by Arab falconers. In general, sakers have white or pale spots on the inner webs of their tail feathers, rather than the bars of color that are common among other desert falcons. As the underwing is usually pale, it has a translucent appearance when contrasted against the dark axillaries and primary tips.
Saker females are markedly larger than males; females typically weigh 970 to 1300 g (average 1135 g), have an average length of 55 cm, and a wingspan of 120 to 130 cm. Males usually weigh from 730 to 990 grams (average 840 g), are about 45 cm long on average, and have a wingspan of 100 to 110 cm.
As with other falcons, sakers have sharp, curved talons, used primarily for grasping prey. Sakers use their powerful, hooked beak to sever the prey’s vertebral column.
Range mass: 730 to 1300 g.
Average length: 45 cm for males, 55 cm for females cm.
Range wingspan: 100 to 130 cm.
Average wingspan: 105 cm for males, 125 cm for females cm.
Sexual Dimorphism: female larger
Other Physical Features: endothermic ; bilateral symmetry
Falcons used for hunting are still subject to many of the same causes of mortality as those in the wild, including several bacterial and viral diseases, parasites, bumblefoot disease, lead and ammonium chloride poisoning, and injuries incurred from impacting or struggling with prey, to name a few.
Although most wild individuals are expected to live from 5 to 7 years, a few of these birds have been known to live for as long as 10 years. Captive animals tend to live longer than their wild counterparts. In captivity, sakers are expected to live from 15 to 20 years, but may reach a maximum age of about 25 years.
Range lifespan
Status: wild: 10 (high) years.
Range lifespan
Status: captivity: 25 (high) years.
Typical lifespan
Status: wild: 5 to 7 years.
Typical lifespan
Status: captivity: 15 to 20 years.
Sakers occupy stick nests in trees, about 15 to 20 meters above the ground, in parklands and open forests at the edge of the tree line. No one has ever observed a saker falcon building its own stick nest; they generally occupy abandoned nests of other bird species, and sometimes even drive owners from an occupied nest. In the more rugged areas of their range, sakers have been known to use nests on cliff ledges, about 8 to 50 meters above the base.
Habitat Regions: temperate ; terrestrial
Terrestrial Biomes: tundra ; taiga ; forest ; scrub forest ; mountains
Saker falcons (often simply called “sakers”) occur in the semi-desert and forest regions from Eastern Europe to central Asia, where they are the dominant “desert falcon.” Saker falcons migrate as far as northern parts of southern Asia and parts of Africa for the winter. Recently (in 1997), sakers have been observed breeding as far west as Germany.
Biogeographic Regions: palearctic (Native ); oriental (Native )
As mentioned before, a female saker will make a “chip” noise to prompt her young to open their beaks for food, and they will chirp to get a parent’s attention. Male sakers call during their aerial displays in order to attract or impress a female, and if the female accepts the male, she may join in the calling at the end. Sakers may often call aggressively to drive off intruders from the nest or a freshly killed meal.
Sakers, like other falcons, communicate fairly often by posturing. The most aggressive display is the Upright Threat; the bird stands up straight, spreads its wings and fluffs out its facial feathers, hisses, cackles, and strikes with the feet. This display is used by adult falcons in defense of the young, and by feathered nestlings against nest intruders. Sakers also use bowing to appease a mate, and communicate submission with a modified version of bowing, in which the beak is pointed to the side.
Communication Channels: visual ; tactile ; acoustic
Other Communication Modes: duets
Perception Channels: visual ; ultraviolet; tactile ; acoustic ; chemical
The fact that female sakers, being larger, are preferred by falconers has led to a gender imbalance in wild populations, with males outnumbering females. In fact, about 90 percent of the almost 2,000 falcons trapped each year during the fall migration are females. These numbers cannot be reported with absolute certainty, because some sakers are illegally trapped and exported, especially in Mongolia, so it is impossible to know the true number of sakers taken from the wild each year. Juveniles are easier to train than adults, so most of the trapped sakers are around one year old. In addition, in the Middle East many falconers release their sakers because it is difficult to care for them during the hot summer months, and many trained birds escape. Basically, the number of sakers taken each year probably does not have a significant impact on the species, but the preference for female sakers does. In addition, sakers are affected by the use of pesticides (which contaminate their prey) and destruction of their habitat. A fairly recent estimate of the saker population in the wild is from 1982, when the population stood at about 100,000 pairs. That does not include juveniles, captive birds that may have later been released back into the wild, or pairs that ornithologists may have missed, so the estimate is probably on the low side. However, saker falcons an endangered.
US Migratory Bird Act: no special status
US Federal List: no special status
CITES: appendix ii
IUCN Red List of Threatened Species: vulnerable
As with all falcons, sakers may prey upon species (such as pigeons) that humans value. They are not well liked by gamekeepers.
Sakers are a favorite of Arab falconers.
Positive Impacts: pet trade ; ecotourism ; controls pest population
Sakers are important predators of small mammals and medium-sized birds.
During the breeding season, small mammals such as ground squirrels, hamsters, jerboas, gerbils, hares, and pikas may constitute 60 to 90% of a saker pair’s diet. At other times, ground-dwelling birds such as quail, sandgrouse, pheasants, and more aerial birds such as ducks, herons, and even other raptors (owls, kestrels, and harriers) can account for 30 to 50% of all prey, especially in more forested areas. Sakers may also eat large lizards.
Animal Foods: birds; mammals; amphibians; reptiles; insects
Foraging Behavior: stores or caches food
Primary Diet: carnivore (Eats terrestrial vertebrates)
In order to attract females, male sakers engage in spectacular aerial displays, in common with many other members of the genus Falco. Male sakers soar over their territories, calling loudly. They end their display flights by landing on or near a suitable nesting site.
In closer encounters with a mate or prospective mate, sakers bow to each other, and many interactions incorporate some element of bowing. Males also often feed their mates during the nesting period. When wooing a potential mate, a male will fly around, dangling prey from his talons, or will bring it to the female in an attempt to prove that he is a good provider.
Mating System: monogamous
Sakers are generally two to three years old before they begin breeding. There can be 2 to 6 eggs per brood, but generally the number is between 3 and 5 (on average 4). After the third egg is laid, full incubation begins, and usually lasts for about 32 to 36 days. In general, as is true for most falcons, males offspring develop faster than females.
The young hatch with their eyes closed, but they open in a few days. They have two downy nestling plumages before attaining juvenile plumage. They attain adult plumage when a little over a year old, after their first annual molt.
Females reach sexual maturity about a year before males; they occasionally breed in their first year, but usually not until their second or third year, and some wait until their fourth year. Males, on the other hand, begin breeding in their second year at the very earliest; most wait until the third or fourth year, and some males don’t begin breeding until their fifth year.
Breeding interval: Saker falcons breed once a year.
Breeding season: Sakers breed in the springtime. Copulation may occur as often as several times a day for a period of 4 to 8 weeks before any eggs are laid.
Range eggs per season: 2 to 6.
Range time to hatching: 32 to 36 days.
Range fledging age: 45 to 50 days.
Range time to independence: 65 to 85 days.
Range age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female): 1 to 4 years.
Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (female): 2-3 years.
Range age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male): 2 to 5 years.
Average age at sexual or reproductive maturity (male): 3-4 years.
Key Reproductive Features: iteroparous ; seasonal breeding ; gonochoric/gonochoristic/dioecious (sexes separate); sexual ; fertilization ; oviparous
Young sakers begin to fly at about 45 to 50 days of age, but remain within the nesting territory, dependent on their parents for food, for another 30 to 45 days, and occasionally longer. If they encounter a large localized source of food, brood mates may remain together for some time.
While still in the nest, chicks chirps to get a parent’s attention if they are isolated, cold, or hungry. In addition, females may make a soft “chip” noise to prompt their young to open their beaks to receive food. Mothers will pass over a chick that is begging but has a full crop in order to feed a chick that has not eaten enough. When a brood is well-fed, the chicks get along better than in a brood subject to food scarcity. In a well-fed brood, the chicks share food as well as explore with each other once they begin to fly. In contrast, when food is scarce, chicks guard their food from one another, and may even try to steal food from their parents. If a chick dies and the rest of the brood is hungry, they will eat their dead sibling, but fratricide has never been observed.
Parental Investment: altricial ; pre-fertilization (Provisioning); pre-hatching/birth (Provisioning: Male, Protecting: Male, Female); pre-weaning/fledging (Provisioning: Male, Protecting: Male, Female); pre-independence (Provisioning: Male, Protecting: Male, Female); post-independence association with parents; extended period of juvenile learning
it is threatened by declining of its prey[rodents] due to transforming agriculture and habitats,poisning,electrocution and nest robbing,farm developement.
The saker falcon (Falco cherrug) is a large species of falcon. This species breeds from central Europe eastwards across the Palearctic to Manchuria. It is mainly migratory except in the southernmost parts of its range, wintering in Ethiopia, the Arabian peninsula, northern Pakistan and western China. The saker falcon is the second fastest bird in level flight after the white-throated needletail swift, capable of reaching 150 km/h (93 mph). It is also the 3rd fastest animal in the world overall after the peregrine falcon and the golden eagle, with all three species capable of executing high speed dives known as “swooping”, in excess of 320 km/h (200 mph). The saker falcon is the national bird of Hungary, the United Arab Emirates, and Mongolia.
This species belongs to the close-knit hierofalcon complex. In this group, there is ample evidence for rampant hybridization and incomplete lineage sorting which confounds analyses of DNA sequence data to a massive extent; molecular studies with small sample sizes can simply not be expected to yield reliable conclusions in the entire hierofalcon group. The radiation of the entire living diversity of hierofalcons seems to have taken place in the Eemian interglacial at the start of the Late Pleistocene, a mere 130,000–115,000 years ago; the saker falcon represents a lineage that expanded out of northeastern Africa into the interior of southeastern Europe and Asia, by way of the eastern Mediterranean region.[2][3][4][5]
In captivity, lanners and sakers can interbreed, and gyrfalcon-saker hybrids are also available (see bird flu experiment described in "Ecology and status"). The specific name, cherrug, comes from the Sindhi name charg for a female saker.[6] The common name saker comes from the (Arabic: صقر, romanized: Ṣaqr) meaning "falcon".[7][8]
Saker falcons at the northeast edge of the range in the Altai Mountains are slightly larger, and darker and more heavily spotted on the underparts than other populations. These, known as the Altai falcon, have been treated in the past either as a distinct species "Falco altaicus" or as a hybrid between saker falcon and gyrfalcon, but modern opinion (e.g. (Orta 1994)) is to tentatively treat it as a form of saker falcon, until comprehensive studies of its population genetics and ecology are available.[9]
The saker falcon is a large hierofalcon, larger than the lanner falcon and almost as large as gyrfalcon at 45–57 cm (18–22 in) length with a wingspan of 97–126 cm (38–50 in). Males weigh between 730–990 g (26–35 oz) and females 970–1,300 g (34–46 oz). It resembles a larger but browner gyrfalcon. It is larger and more heavily built than the related lanner falcon.[9]
Saker falcons tend to have variable plumage. Males and females are similar, except in size, as are young birds, although these tend to be darker and more heavily streaked. The call is a sharp kiy-ee or a repeated kyak-kyak-kyak.[9]
The saker falcon is a raptor of open grasslands preferably with some trees or cliffs. It often hunts by horizontal pursuit, rather than the peregrine's stoop from a height, and feeds mainly on rodents and birds. In Europe, ground squirrels and feral pigeons are the most common prey items. This species usually builds no nest of own, but lays its 3–6 eggs in an old stick nest in a tree which was previously used by other birds such as storks, ravens or buzzards. It also often nests on cliffs.
Saker nests support a species-rich assemblage of commensal insects.[10]
BirdLife International categorises this bird as endangered, due to a rapid population decline, particularly on the central Asian breeding grounds. Ever since the collapse of the Soviet Union, the United Arab Emirates have been the main destination for thousands of falcons caught and sold illegally for hefty sums at the black market. Kazakhstan is estimated to lose up to 1,000 saker falcons per year.[11]
The species also faces pressure from habitat loss and destruction. The population was estimated to be between 7,200 and 8,800 mature individuals in 2004. However, sakers live at low densities across large ranges in remote regions, making distribution status difficult to assess. A climatic niche modelling study pinpointed certain remote areas for targeted population surveys.[12] In the United States, Canada and Europe there are several captive breeding projects. The most dramatic decline of the saker falcon in Asia has been in Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. In contrast, a strongly protected and relatively abundant population persists in Hungary.
Saker falcons are known to be very susceptible to avian influenza, individuals having been found infected with highly pathogenic H5N1 (in Saudi Arabia) and H7N7 (in Italy) strains. Therefore, an experiment was done with hybrid gyr-saker falcons, which found that five falcons vaccinated with a commercial H5N2 influenza vaccine survived infection with a highly pathogenic H5N1 strain, whereas five unvaccinated falcons died. This means that sakers could be protected from bird flu by vaccination, at least in captivity.[13]
Egg
Captive, Carolina Raptor Center, United States
Captive, Carolina Raptor Center
Captive bird, Chew Valley Lake, England
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Falcon training in Moscow
Captive bird
Flying bird at bird show
A Hungarian mythological bird, the Turul, was probably a saker falcon (kerecsensólyom), and the saker falcon is the national bird of Hungary.[14][15] In 2012, the saker falcon was selected as the national bird of Mongolia.[16]
The saker falcon has been used in falconry for thousands of years, and like its very close relative, the gyrfalcon, is a highly regarded in it. Swift and powerful, it is effective against medium-sized to large-sized game bird species.[17] Saker falcons can reach speeds of 120 to 150 km/h and suddenly swoop down on their prey.[18] The saker falcon and peregrine falcon can be hybridised to provide falcons used in the control of larger birds considered pests.[19][20]
The saker falcon (Falco cherrug) is a large species of falcon. This species breeds from central Europe eastwards across the Palearctic to Manchuria. It is mainly migratory except in the southernmost parts of its range, wintering in Ethiopia, the Arabian peninsula, northern Pakistan and western China. The saker falcon is the second fastest bird in level flight after the white-throated needletail swift, capable of reaching 150 km/h (93 mph). It is also the 3rd fastest animal in the world overall after the peregrine falcon and the golden eagle, with all three species capable of executing high speed dives known as “swooping”, in excess of 320 km/h (200 mph). The saker falcon is the national bird of Hungary, the United Arab Emirates, and Mongolia.
