Gyrfalcon

Gyrfalcon
Conservation status
Least Concern  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
CITES Appendix I (CITES)[2]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Falconiformes
Family:	Falconidae
Genus:	Falco
Subgenus:	Hierofalco
Species:	F. rusticolus
Binomial name
Falco rusticolus Linnaeus, 1758
Synonyms
List Falco arcticus Holbøll, 1843 Falco candicans Gmelin, 1788 Falco gyrfalco Linnaeus, 1758 Falco islandus Brünnich, 1764 Falco obsoletus Gmelin, 1788 Falco rusticolus candicans Gmelin, 1788 Falco rusticolus grebnitzkii (Severtzov, 1885) Falco rusticolus intermedius Gloger, 1834 Falco rusticolus islandus Brünnich, 1764 (but see text) Falco rusticolus obsoletus Gmelin, 1788 Falco rusticolus rusticolus Linnaeus, 1758 Falco swarthi L.H. Miller, 1927 Hierofalco grebnitzkii Severtzov, 1885) Hierofalco islandus (Brünnich, 1764) Hierofalco rusticolus (Linnaeus, 1758) Hierofalco rusticolus candicans (Gmelin, 1788)

The gyrfalcon (/ˈdʒɜːrˌfɔː(l)kən/ or /ˈdʒɜːrˌfælkən/)^[3] (Falco rusticolus), also abbreviated as gyr, is a bird of prey from the genus Falco (falcons and kestrels) and the largest species of the family Falconidae.^[4] A high-latitude species, the gyrfalcon breeds on the Arctic coasts and tundra, the islands of northern North America and the Eurosiberian region, where it is mainly a resident species. Some gyrfalcons disperse more widely after the breeding season or in winter, and individual vagrancy can take birds for long distances. Its plumage varies with location, with birds being coloured from all-white to dark brown. These colour variations are called morphs. Like other falcons, it shows sexual dimorphism, with the female much larger than the male.

For centuries, the gyrfalcon has been valued as a hunting bird. Typical prey includes the ptarmigan and waterfowl, which it may attack in flight; and it also hunts fish and small mammals.