The first breeding record of the Barbary falcon (Falco pelegrinoides) in Mongolia

Recent taxonomic references consider the Barbary Falcon a separate species. The species occurs in the Canary Islands, Africa, and countries across Asia. It prefers desert mountains with high cliffs, coastlines, open woodlands and human settlement. The status of the species for Mongolia is “Passage migrant” where it occurs in S & C Mongolia. There are a few historical and recent documented records of the species, none of which mention breeding in Mongolia. A joint field team of the Mongolian Ornithological Society, the National University of Mongolia, Snow Leopard Conservation Foundation and the Snow Leopard Trust conducted field surveys on species composition, density and occurrence of birds across most habitats of the Tost and Tosonbumba Nature Reserve in the Gurvantes sum, Ömnögobi aimag, from May 2017 to December 2018. The team found one nest with three young chicks on a high cliff on Sharga Morit Mountain in the Tost Mountains on 3 May 2018. The breeding pair selected an old Raven’s nest located on a ledge on a 150 m cliff. The age of the three chicks was approximately one week. The female aggressively defended the nest site and the chicks. The male was observed bringing food to the female. Adult and young birds stayed in the breeding territory till late July. This is the first documented breeding of the species for Mongolia. Further studies on breeding ecology, migration and threats to the species are needed to learn more about the species in Mongolia.