Red-necked Falcon

The red-necked falcon is a medium-sized, long-winged falcon, 30–36 cm long with a wingspan of about 85 cm. The Indian form, also called the red-headed merlin or red-headed falcon, has bluish-grey wings and upper body, a chestnut-red cap with short chin straps passing through the eye, black primaries and a single black band at the tail tip. Females are larger, and Indian falconers called the female turumti and the male chatwa. Young birds are buff below with less extensive barring and duller upperparts (Wikipedia, general species account).

It has two disjunct populations, one in India and one in Africa; the Indian form is found mainly on the open plains of the subcontinent. Pairs hunt together mostly at dawn and dusk, taking small birds, bats and squirrels. It usually reuses old tree nests, particularly those of corvids, or builds one in the fork of a tall tree or in the crown of a palm, often a Borassus palm, and lays three to five eggs; the young fledge in about 35–37 days in Africa and up to 48 in India. SoIB 2023 rates it a Moderate conservation priority, a resident of open habitat with a Large range and a long-term decline of about 57% (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).