Special Places: Eco-lessons from the National Parks in Atlantic Canada

Information Sheet: Peregrine Falcon

Introduction

Peregrine falcons have been called “swift-flying hunters of the sky.” They are smaller than a hawk and approximately the size of a crow. They plummet and strike their winged prey, knocking them out of the air. They are at the top of the food chain, feeding upon songbirds and shorebirds.

© Parks Canada / Don Pentz

According to the Canadian Wildlife Service, the peregrine falcon is “threatened” nationally, but it is “endangered” provincially (e.g. New Brunswick). In Manitoba, Ontario and New Brunswick it is protected under the Endangered Species Act, which protects it from shooting, collecting, harassment and destruction of habitat. It is also listed in the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), which restricts the import and export of birds and eggs.

Reasons for Species Loss

• Pesticide Contamination – The species was destroyed in Eastern Canada due to the residual chemical compound DDE, a breakdown product of the organochlorine DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane) during the 1950s and 1960s. It was mostly used as an insecticide. DDT was sprayed over crops and remained in the surfaces of leaves and seeds. Herbivores ate the plant product and ingested the DDT. Peregrines caught and ate the birds contaminated with DDT. When accumulated in the body of the falcon, the DDT caused physiologic changes, including thinning egg shells, disruption of reproductive systems and uncharacteristic parental behavior. Finally, this led to the abandonment of traditional nesting sites.

Efforts to Conserve

• A ban on the use of DDT – A ban on the use of pesticides in the 1970s led to a reduction of residues in prey species.
• Re-introduction – In 1982, Fundy National Park and the Canadian Wildlife Service began programs to reestablish the birds in the upper Bay of Fundy. They established one program at Cap d’Or in Nova Scotia and one in Fundy National Park in New Brunswick.
• Protection through the Endangered Species Act – This act prohibits the shooting, collecting and harassing of peregrine falcons as well as the destruction of their habitat.
• Records – Surveys of population were carried out, looking for evidence of nesting.

References

Parks Canada, Fundy National Park Ecosystem Conservation Plan, 1997.

Parks Canada, Resource Conservation. Peregrine Falcon Release: Fundy National Park, 1984.

Parks Canada Web site: www.parkscanada.gc.ca

Species at Risk Web site: www.speciesatrisk.gc.ca