Site tenacity and pair bond of the Eleonora's falcon

Abstract

Birds with a long expectation of life tend to show site tenacity and lifelong pair bonds (Bezzel 1977). Birds of prey usually belong to this group. The object of our study, Eleonora's Falcon Falco eleonorae, lives colonially and therefore offers the opportunity for ringing reasonable numbers and obtaining local retraps and recoveries, Preliminary results are presented in this communication. The Investigations were conducted in an Aeaean colony of about 180 pairs during six breeding seasons ( 1965-78). The colony is situated on a small rocky island (<1 km2). Nestlings were ringed all over the island, but retraps of adult falcons were restricted to sites which were easily accessible and where disturbance could be kept to a minimum.