Here are documentary pictures that initiate the gallery of the Peregrine Falcon. I hope the gallery soon include other photos of this species of the better quality. The Peregrine Falcon appeared just once for a short while I was taking photos the European Ground Squirrel. The hope to take more pictures in the future is easy to fulfil, because the expanses inhabited by the Peregrine Falcon are wide, when one considers the map of the entire world. It is found in both Americas, in Africa, Asia, Australia and, of course, in Europe. As other predators, the female representatives of the species are heavier than males and may weigh up to 1,3 kilograms. Their wingspan is no more than one metre. It is slightly heavier than the Brown Falcon in Australia. The Peregrine Falcon, however, has different preying habits. It hunts in flight, attacking its prey while nose-diving at them with the speed of over 300 km/h. It even has special valve in its respiratory system, so that the air pressure does no damage to its lungs. This is the second gallery on my website.
Last minute news -03/2016
Again, photos taken by chance are uploaded to my gallery. It is a pity that they are of questionable, documentary quality, as the peregrine falcon is a beautiful bird. In this gallery, unfortunately, it will be not so easy to make some radical changes. The falcon, this time, perched on the breakwater at the port of Hel. Bad light, the 2X converter and very strong framing - could it get any worse?
Last minute news -03/2016- Heligoland Germany
After five years, my next encounter with the peregrine falcon took place. Unfortunately, just as ineffective as the previous ones. But an encounter with such a species should be noted in the information provided by the gallery of this species. There were actually two meetings. While photographing the waders on the beach, the falcon made a raid, after which all the birds took flight in panic. In a split second the beach was deserted. During the second flight, unfortunately, the autofocus did not sharpen. So far I have added two poorly sharp photos as a souvenir of the meeting, and the gallery itself remains documentary.
Last minute news-05/2022-Dubrovnik-Croatia
I add another documentation photo of a peregrine falcon. This time the falcon frightened away all the swifts from the historic port in Dubrovnik. It was a little before sunrise, so there were no conditions for a good photo, and again the sky in the background.
Last minute news-03/2023-Morocco
Last minute news-07/2025- United Kingdom
Finally – after more than eleven years since my first accidental encounter with a peregrine falcon in Turkey – it happened. This time it wasn’t by chance but a planned expedition that ended in success. Until now, I had seen peregrine falcons in Poland, Germany, Croatia, and Morocco. But it was always the same: a brief observation, a documentary-style photo from a great distance, and that was it. No chance for anything more. There are no hides prepared specifically for peregrines, you can’t lure them in, and they won’t show up at baiting sites. And yet, they are true cosmopolitans – inhabiting almost the entire world, except Antarctica. In Poland, however, they remain an extremely rare breeding species. I couldn't allow such a fascinating bird to have only a few low-quality documentary photos on my website.My fascination with the peregrine falcon has many roots. It’s a beautiful bird, with extraordinary grace and silhouette. On top of that, it's the fastest animal on Earth – in a hunting stoop, it can exceed 300 km/h, attacking other birds with incredible precision. And finally: it’s a part of our native fauna, which makes it especially important to me. In search of a place with a higher probability of photographing peregrines well, all roads led to the United Kingdom – more specifically, to the Isle of Man. Although there are no hides that facilitate photographing peregrines there, the island, with an area of less than 600 km², is home to a population of several dozen pairs – more than in the whole of Poland! The key turned out to be Paweł – kind, dedicated, extremely knowledgeable about the island, and photographing the local peregrines for years. Thanks to him, I knew where to look and when to wait. Paweł – a huge thank you for your time, patience, knowledge, and support. Without you, this gallery would still be only documentary-level. For nearly three days we roamed the island, observed, and waited for the birds to appear. Ironically, most of the peregrines were urban birds – often perching on a church tower in the city center, scanning for pigeons. One pair had its nest on a cliff on the edge of town, just above some industrial buildings. The employees there would occasionally approach us, curious, to have a quick chat about the falcons living above their heads. Even though they had peregrines literally "under their noses," they rarely found the time to truly watch them. Watching a falcon family was truly exciting. Once, a young, inexperienced peregrine tried its hunting skills on a passing wood pigeon. The adult pigeon instinctively dropped in altitude while escaping and eventually landed near us, just 10 meters away. It was clearly terrified by the attack and seemed to need a moment to rest and calm down before flying off again. By July, the young falcons were already flying, but they still stayed close to the nest, calling loudly and urging their parents to feed them. I even recorded the call of one of the juveniles. Sometimes, after an hour or two of waiting, an impatient and hungry young falcon would "attack" a parent to force it to hunt and feed it. Capturing such an encounter is a photographic challenge – peregrines are unpredictable, incredibly fast, change direction instantly, and always keep their distance. After many attempts, I finally succeeded. I took photos that completely transformed my gallery for this species. The old photos have been archived, removed from my website – giving way to the new ones, the ones I had been waiting for all these years. At last, the peregrine falcon has its rightful place on my website. The gallery now holds a “very good” status and has been added to the site’s highlights. Though I must admit, seeing Paweł’s photos – and those of his friend – still leaves me with a bit of hunger for better shots. But perhaps that’s how it always is with wildlife photography: there’s always the possibility of a better frame, in better light…
Paweł – once again, my sincere thanks!
As I do after every expedition, I’ve posted in the gallery information section a list of newly created and updated galleries featuring photos taken during this trip. This list also serves as a set of links to the respective galleries. If a species name is followed by the letter T, it means the gallery includes a text about the species; the letter V indicates that an audio recording of the bird’s call is also available.
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