Falco concolor

Near Threatened

NT (D1)

Update Time: Jan. 1, 2011, 7:39 a.m.

The Sooty Falcon is classified as Near Threatened (NT) because of its small population size (about 200 mature individuals), combined with a regional adjustment for being a marginal population at the edge of its global range. In addition, it is classified as globally endangered (Vulnerable – VU). In the previous edition of the Red Book (2002), it was classified as Vulnerable (VU). The apparent improvement in its status does not reflect a real improvement, but mainly differences in methods and the quality of the data between the editions.

NT Current Regional Assessment | VU Previous Regional Assessment | VU Global Assessment

Habitats	Desert Cliffs
Presence In Israel	Migrant, Summer
Breeding In Israel	Breeder
Migration Types	Long Range
Zoographical Zones	Saharo-Arabian
Landscape Types	Cliffs
Vegetation Densities	Low
Nest Locations	Cliffs
Diet Types	Terrestrial Vertebrates
Foraging Grounds	Aerial
Body Sizes	Small (up to 500g)
Threat Factors	Hikers and rock climbers, Helicopter and aircraft activity in breeding areas, Direct disturbance from human activity

The Sooty Falcon is a slim, elegant long-winged falcon that nests on arid desert cliffs, occasionally near seacoasts. The mature bird is blackish-dark grey, with the exception of its legs, eye ring and cere that are bright yellow. In flight, it is identified by its long sharp silhouette and its tendency to glide on half-closed wings. It specializes in catching birds and bats in flight. Nesting occurs late in the summer to coincide with autumn migration of small passerine that provide food for their young.

The Sooty Falcon is a relatively rare summer breeder in the Eilat Mountains, the Arava, the Negev Highlands and the Judean Desert north to Nahal Arugot (Frumkin & Man 1984, Shirihai 1996, Goren & Granit 2014).

גורן, מ. וגרניט, ב. 2014. סקר קינון בזים שחורים בחבל המדברי של ישראל, 2011-2014. דו"ח רשות הטבע והגנים ומרכז הצפרות של החברה להגנת הטבע.
גרניט, ב., גורן, מ. ושני, א., 2011. סקר קינון בזים שחורים בנגב, דרום מדבר יהודה והרי אילת, סתיו 2011. דו"ח רשות הטבע והגנים ומרכז הצפרות של החברה להגנת הטבע.
פז, ע. 1986. עופות. מתוך אלון, ע. (עורך), החי והצומח של ארץ ישראל. כרך 6. הוצאת משרד הביטחון, ישראל.
פרלמן, י., שוחט, א. ולבינגר, ז. 2009. סקר אטלס ציפורים בערבה סיכום שנת 2009. דו"ח מרכז הצפרות של החברה להגנת הטבע.

Shirihai, H., 1996. The Birds of Israel. Academic Press, London.
Symes, A. 2013. Species generation lengths. Unpublished, BirdLife International.
Species page at Birdlife International

Contributed: Avner Rinot, Meidad Goren, Barak Granit, Asaf Mayrose, Noam Weiss

Current Occupancy Map

Current occupancy map by density
Data Missing	Sporadic	Limited Sites	Low Density	High Density
0	0	0	0	0

More Maps

Distribution maps

The maps presented here provide visual information on the distribution of species in Israel from the past and present, and the changes in occupancy and breeding density during the comparison period. For further reading

Relative Abundance 2010-2020

Breeding density values in the current decade as determined from experts' opinion and observations from databases.

Relative Abundance 2010-2020 by density
Data Missing	Sporadic	Limited Sites	Low Density	High Density
8	12	12	21	19

Relative Abundance 1980-1990

Density values based primarily on the book The Birds of Israel (Shirihai 1996).

Relative Abundance 1980-1990 by density
Data Missing	Sporadic	Limited Sites	Low Density	High Density
5	14	14	17	22

Occupancy 1990-2020

The map shows differences in the species breeding distribution between the 1980's breeding map and the current weighted breeding evaluation. Negative value - species previously bred in the grid and is not presently breeding; positive value - species has not previously bred in the grid and is currently breeding.

Occupancy 1990-2020
Data Missing	No Change	Occupancy Increase	Occupancy Decrease
6	35	1	9

Change in Relative Abundance 1990-2020

The map shows the changes in the relative abundance of a species in each of the distribution grids between the breeding map of the 1980s and the weighted current breeding evaluation. Negative values - decline in abundance; positive values - increase in abundance; zero - no change in abundance.

Change in Relative Abundance 1990-2020
80 to 100	50	20 to 30	No Change	30- to 20-	50-	100- to 80-	Data Missing
0	4	2	22	12	14	11	16

Rarity
Vulnerability
Attractiveness
Endemism
Red number
Peripherality

IUCN category
Threat Definition according to the red book