Thanks to all who responded to my query. I should have mentioned that the bird was travelling across Duffy – so quite a long distance to fly so fast.
Although it would be good to have a secure identity for the bird, I am satisfied to not know the answer. I hope to see lots more of these birds maybe to get an idea of their relative speed when traversing an
area. Hobbies generally seem to me to be looking for prey, sitting perched when feeding, having difficulty carrying prey to a nest, or even in aerial display. Peregrines seem to do the same things as Hobbies but more delicately.
I ramble on
Jean
From: Geoffrey Dabb [
Sent: Saturday, 2 November, 2019 08:51 AM
To:
Subject: FW: [canberrabirds] Q: Peregrine or Hobby speed of flight?
An interesting Q, Jean. We are not speaking here of the fabled swoop of a plummeting falcon, but of birds in level flight. The difficulty of recording speeds over a short distance means that there
are no reliable comparative numbers. A strong breeze can also affect apparent speed by 100kph or more, depending whether the bird is flying with or against the wind. I do not wish to appear unhelpful, but my own inclination would be to avoid apparent speed
as the basis for a conclusion that an otherwise unidentifiable bird is a peregrine falcon rather than a hobby.
From: Jean Casburn <>
Sent: Saturday, 2 November 2019 8:25 AM
To: canberrabirds <>
Subject: [canberrabirds] Q: Peregrine or Hobby speed of flight?
This morning seen in the distance a dark bird with very pointed wings flying very fast and strongly – at first I thought Hobby, but on second thought the speed was so fast maybe Peregrine. Do any watchers know if a Hobby can fly as fast as a Peregrine?
Noisy Friarbirds have invaded my location, along with Red Wattle Birds noisy Yellow-faced Honeyeaters, Silvereye and of course Blackbirds – all calling, clearly heard with widows open. Frequent chasing flapping of wings, snapping bills, and even screams
of terror from the Friarbirds at times.
Jean
