Merlin

Danish: Dværgfalk (gl.: Stenfalk) Swedish: Stenfalk Norwegian: Dvergfalk Icelandic: Smyrill

Faroese: Smyril Greenlandic: ? Finnish: ? German: Merlin

French: Faucon émerillon Spanish: Esmerejón Italian: Smeriglio Arabic: Saker El Hamam

Physical Characteristics: Size: Small. 25-30 cm. Build: Compact. Wings and tail: Wings relatively short and pointed. Wingspan: 50-65 cm Colours: Female: Brown back and marked longitudinally stripes on the underside. Male: Blue-grey back and bright brown underside. Voice: Easily confused with: Peregrine falcon, gyrfalcon. Range: Breeding range is circumpolar, extending from the treeline to north of the 40th parallel. Population: Migration: Habitat: Throughout its range the merlin inhabits extremely varying habitats. Breeding: Starts breeding at the age of 1-2 years. A couple only stays together for a single season.    Frequently the eggs are laid in an old corvids nest - more rarely on the bare rock.    Commonly 3-5 eggs are laid. The young hatch after 26 days of incubation by both the male and the female, and will start flying 28-32 days after hatching. Another approx. 30 days passes by before the young are independent of their parents. Food: The major source of food is small birds, but also small mammals as mice and lemmings are taken. Hunting technique: Attempts to surprise quarry by closing in on it flying in low height - approx. 1 m over the ground.

Use in Falconry: Ringing flights at skylarks (the merlin pursuing larks in a powerful spiralling upwards flight) are what is usually associated with the merlin, but also quail and even partridge is within range - the latter admittedly mainly with females of the larger subspecies. In many aspects merlins are miniature gyrfalcons: temper, flightstyle and disinclination to wait-on above the falconer are traits shared by both species.
   The "Perlin" - the merlin/peregrine hybrid is becoming increasingly popular. It's larger size and the fact that it waits-on nicely and appears to be faster than the peregrine makes it an interesting invention in falconry.