Saker Falcon

The Saker Falcon (Falco cherrug) is a large migratory raptor of the open steppes, grasslands, and semi-arid regions of Europe and Central Asia. Within the Central Asian Flyway (CAF), it breeds across Kazakhstan, Mongolia, China, and other parts of Central Asia, with some populations migrating south to winter in northwestern India and other parts of South and Southwest Asia. The species inhabits open grasslands, steppes, rocky cliffs, and agricultural landscapes, preying primarily on small mammals and medium-sized birds. It nests on cliffs, trees, and increasingly on artificial structures such as power pylons. Globally classified as Endangered, the Saker Falcon faces major threats from habitat degradation, electrocution on power infrastructure, poisoning, and unsustainable trapping for falconry, underscoring the importance of coordinated conservation across its breeding, migratory, and wintering range. The Saker Falcon holds deep cultural significance across Central Asia as the traditional falconry bird of nomadic peoples and remains a symbol of the region's falconry heritage.