The diet of Saker Falcon (Falco cherrug) on the eastern fringe of Gurban Tunggut Desert, China

The diet of the Saker Falcon (Falco cherrug) as an endangered species in China, has been seldom studied. During the 2005 breeding season, we identified 212 prey items from among 342 pellets and 236 items of prey remains from 6 active nests of the Saker Falcon. Identified prey included 23 species: 3 mammals, 17 birds, 2 reptiles and 1 insect. In terms of frequency of occurrence, birds comprised 52.4% of the diet, mammals 21.7%, insect 17.5% and reptiles 8.4%. In term of biomass, birds comprised 44.4% of the diet, mammals 46.9%, reptiles 8.3% and insect 0.4%. Our results suggest that this falcon is an opportunistic hunter and feeds on a wide range of animals throughout its habitat.