PF- Brakes applied!

[Wild-Woman]

I was asked this the other day and couldn't truthfully answer it. When a Peregrine Falcon is in full stoop at 200 mph how close to its prey is it when it applies the brakes? How does it avoid crashing?
I'll be interested to know myself. I have no idea how it calculates distance at that speed.

[Rye]

I imagine it's the same as humans when we drive, variable dependant on conditions.

[John B (NTS)]

Those I've watched hunting (and it has been a few) normally level off from their stoop some distance behind the target and attack in level flight using the plentiful velocity gathered in the stoop to catch-up. I don't think that Peregrines are actually capable of violent braking when in a stoop. They instinctively know how far behind the target to level off (and it's a very abrupt manouvre which exerts far more Gs on the Peregrine than you or I could survive).

A variation I've also seen uses gentle gravitational assistance in a shallow dive to build-up sufficient airspeed to catch up with the target.

In either situation, if the the Peregrine misses and the target manages to get a height advantage it's normally game over.

[Dogghound]

Originally Posted by Wild-Woman

I was asked this the other day and couldn't truthfully answer it. When a Peregrine Falcon is in full stoop at 200 mph how close to its prey is it when it applies the brakes?

If in a stoop they tend not to stop and hit the target at quite considerable speed. This is usually what kills the prey, with the talon striking the victims head. Their eyesight and sense of distance is very advanced so they slow down well before hitting the ground. They attack in a slower dive if a victim is close to the ground or use another hunting method.

[werdnal]

I would agree - having been unfortunate enough to lose a couple of our domestic pigeons to peregrines, they do use the impact of their stoop to stun, if not kill their prey. That is, unless they are training their young to hunt, then they will moderate the strike to carry live prey back for young to practice on. We had 2 youngsters perched on a pylon behind our house a few years ago, and parents hunted together to catch a pigeon, carry it within range of the young, then drop it for them to catch for themselves. Fascinating sight, feel priviledged to have seen it, but not quite so nice when it was one of our pet birds they took!