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Falco mexicanus
A medium-sized falcon of western North America. It has an average length of 40 cm (16 in) and a wingspan of 1 meter (40 in). A conspicuous character is the dark patch in the “armpits”.
Open country such as shortgrass prairie where this photograph was taken.
I found the Falcon while looking for Snowy Owls. This was certainly the best view I have had of a Prairie Falcon. It was nice to see the dark "armpits" so clearly.
Spotted on Nov 27, 2012
Submitted on Dec 20, 2012
7 Comments
No, this is a Prairie Falcon. A good characteristic that can be used to separate Prairie Falcons from Merlins are the distinct dark “armpit” patches underneath the wings.
Merlin?
Great captures!
Beautiful!
Thanks. Along with a Snowy Owl that I saw the same day this was an excellent days birding.
fantastic spotting and nice pics!
Nice spotting Ian