Each week, CatchMark Community features a Wild Animal Fact from Montague native Seth Simon, the creator of the popular bite-sized wildlife series. Seth is known for his upbeat personality, love of animals, and knack for turning fascinating facts into fun, 60-second reads. His goal is to spark curiosity, encourage conservation awareness, and bring a little joy to everyone who follows along. We’re proud to share his work and add a touch of “wild” to your week.
As part of this weekly feature, Seth brings his signature enthusiasm straight to our readers with a fresh creature spotlight—packed with quick facts, habitat insights, and the unique quirks that make each animal extraordinary. His posts combine education and entertainment in a way that’s accessible for all ages, making wildlife learning both fun and memorable. Enjoy this week’s feature below!
Hey 
Wild Fact Fans, Seth here with the new Friday Feature creature. Don’t forget to please like 
, share and comment 
questions 
down below 
If you have any on this weeks animal ^^ or any creature you’d like me to do a post on in the future
This weeks feature creature is an living fighter jet 
of the sky ; who soars far & across many varieties of habitats. From deserts, wetlands, shorelines, forests, grasslands, to even the big cities 
of the world ; this keen eyed migratory raptor can make a living just about anywhere (except Antarctica 
) as long as theres a good supply of medium sized birds 
. Watching over its kingdom with some of the best vision of any animal; its ready to take action when a target 
is spotted; moving at speeds faster than any other creature on the planet 
! Being such an effective hunter of the skies; humans have even learned to train these birds for hunting & to help around airports.
This weeks feature creature is a Peregrine Falcon
1. Measuring in at 2ft long ,with a wingspan of 3 to possibly 4ft, & weighing in at 1 to 3 lbs (around the size of a Crow 
); peregrines are easily recognized by their black, white and bluish gray colored feathers 
. Females (that are called simply “falcons”) are usually larger than males (which are called tiercels )
2. Peregrines are the most widespread raptors & birds in the world as they can be found worldwide (except Antarctica & a few islands 
like New Zealand 
). Mainly their preferred habitat is wherever theres a good cliffside nesting area & plenty of medium sized birds for them to prey on
3. They’re also known for migrating far distances for new territories outside the mating season; relateing to their name “Peregrine” which means wanderer. These falcons can make winter 
round trip journeys of nearly 16,000 miles a year; with lifelong mates meeting together during the breeding season.
4. While mainly silent 
; they do make rasping kack-kack-kack calls to ward off enemies from their young such as other falcons, owls 
, hawks, gulls ,Ravens , and mammals like foxes 
, raccoons, large wild cats , wolverines , & bears. They’re very protective & will dive bomb 
any threats to drive them away
5. As a bird of prey , Peregrine Falcons are carnivores who mainly hunt medium sized birds like pigeons, songbirds , starlings & ducks 
(leading to the other name “Duck Hawk”) along with bats 
, small mammals as large as squirrels 
& hares 
, reptiles 
, insects 
& rarely fish 
. They eat around 2,000 different species of birds ; ranging from tiny hummingbirds to birds as large as Sandhill Cranes!
6. Going into superfast dives when they fold in their wings called stoops from heights of 3,000 ft; Peregrines can reach speeds of 242 mph (Faster than a rollercoaster 
!); Making them the fastest creature on the planet !
7. Theyre perfectly designed for these high speeds with features such as an aerodynamic body to slice thru the air, strut filled hollow bones 
to handle stress from diving, a large breastbone for powering their wings 
, large tail feathers for steering, & specially designed brains 
to handle the fast speeds!
8. They also have a cone shaped structure in their nostrils 
to help control the air flow as they dive so they dont pass out! This is handled thru 9 air sacs that act like bellows which distributes oxygen to the lungs 
for the blood 
. A peregrines heart 
beats at 350 times a min during flight to also handle to diving air flow !
9. Long, pointed Boomerang 
shaped wings with rigid feathers (another main trait of all falcons) also makes them very agile in the air . They can even grab prey mid air & even steal prey from other predatory birds!
10. Even without diving; Peregrines are fast flyers, as they can fly at 40 to 70 mph; as fast as a cheetah 
! This helps with mid air chases and aerial twists and turns on prey or with courtship rituals during the mating season. During courting, males gift 
females food in mid air & even upside down 
!
11. Around 50 to 60 percent of their hunts end in success. They use their amazing speeds to sneak attack prey from above like a stealth 
jet 
; striking from above with great force and clenched feet to stun their prey. If this isnt enough to finish off a target; the falcon will come back up on its stunned 
prey ; striking from below with its special tooth like notched beak & inch long talons to break the spinal cord.
12. Peregrines have some of the keenest eyes 
of any animal; thanks to black patches (eye patches is a main trait for falcons) around their eyes that help cut thru the 
sun’s glare so they can spot prey from more than 5 miles away (8 times farther than a human)! They can also see better when they have their head at a 40 degree angle 
13. Peregrines also have a transparent 3rd eyelid so they can see when they go into their fast stoops plus an extra tear gland to keep their eyes moist & keep free of dust
14. Females lay around 2 to 5 eggs 
that take about a month to hatch 
in a simple nest 
called a scrape that are 9 inches wide & 2 inches deep , that are made of loose soil, sand, or dead plants 
. Both parents raise & protect the chicks together 
which stay for up to 6 weeks.
15. After fledging (which takes 42 to 46 days) ; they take the time they need to learn to fly & how to hunt thru games parents make up! They’ll rely on their parents for about 2 months after hatching & become fully grown in a year. Peregrines can live to be 15 to 20 years old
16. The main predators of Peregrine Falcons are Eagles 
, large Hawks, Owls , and occasionally other peregrines
17. Pesticides were a major threat for this species in the last century. But thanks to the stop 
of those poisons & are big cities with cliff like skyscrapers or bridges 
for nesting , plenty of pigeons & other small birds to hunt , plus lack of main predators/ competition; helped make a huge comeback for these birds!
Next weeks feature creature hint 
: this migratory tropical and ancient fish has a very strange headshape ; similar to a human tool 
Wild Animal Facts: The Hawksbill Sea Turtle
Stay connected to what’s happening in our area by visiting CatchMark Community.
Powered by CatchMark Technologies — helping people, solving problems. Explore more on our website.
