Saker Falcon

Description. Upper parts are brown with buffy-reddish edges of feathers. Upper tail coverts are brownish. Crown is lighter than mantle, greyish-buff with dark streaks. "Moustaches" are slightly faint. Tail feathers are brown with pale transverse spots and whitish terminal edges. Under parts are pale buffy-tinged with dark streaks or drop-shaped spots. Flanks, leg-feathers and under tail covers are without cross pattern.
Distribution. Breeds in forest steppe zone from Ural valley eastward to Altai, in places lives in northern part of deserts.

Description. Upper parts are brownish in buffy-reddish spots formed the barring pattern. Upper tail coverts are light bluish-grey. Crown is lighter than mantle, pale-rufous dark-streaked. Under parts are whitish buffy-tinged with rare streaks. Flanks and leg-feathers have rudimentary streaking but without prominent pattern.
Distribution. Probably breeds in Altai, in winter occurs in south-eastern Kazakhstan. Probably birds nesting in Eastern Tien Shan relate to this race.

Description. Upper parts are brownish with regular pale bars. Head is lighter than mantle. On flanks and leg-feathers the cross pattern is formed by dark spots and streaks.
Distribution. Occurs in winter in spurs and wide valleys of Tien Shan. Probably birds of this race recorded on Markakol lake.

Description. General colour brighter than in previous races. Crown with brick-reddish tinge. Upper parts are dark-brownish with red-rufous edges of feather, and with greyish tinge which is especially intensive on upper tail coverts and on rump. Mantle and wings are with pale bars pattern.
Distribution. Breeds in south Kazakhstan, at Darbaza station, in Karatau ridge and in foothills of Western Tien Shan.

Description. General colour of upper parts is pale, brownish; mantle is with pale-bars pattern. Upper tail coverts are with bluish-grey tinge which is more expressed at males. Legs are dark-streaked.
Distribution. Breeds in Mangyshlak.

Description. It’s a large and very interesting falcon which combines features of the northern Gyrfalcon and Saker. For this reason the different researchers at different times referred Altai Falcon to full species, then to the subspecies of Saker or Gyrfalcon, then to the color morph of Saker, then to natural hybrid of the northern Gyrfalcon with Saker. Plumage color and pattern, and the features of flight and life of the Altai Falcon largely fit to the northern Gyrfalcon, on which these birds differ by less weight and slimmer structure of the feet and beak. The typical Altai Falcons are dark-brown with a bluish tinge on the mantle and upper tail coverts. In the early twentieth century this color morph was predominant, whereas at present time most of the population of birds are gray and bluish-gray. From Saker the Altai Falcon is distinguished by the general dark or gray color, the dark head and the striated pattern on the body-flanks and ‘trousers’. Extremely rare in the population of the Altai Falcons found the specimens of white morph similar to white morph Gyrfalcons. Altai Falcon are capable of forming the pairs with Saker and give the ready to reproduce offspring.
Distribution. Breeds in highlands of Altai, Tarbagatay and probably Tien Shan. Migration areas and wintering places are not explored.