Merlin

Males are light brown, with a white belly with various spots or stripes. There is a slightly more pronounced dark stripe near the mouth. The cheeks and throat are white. The eyes are dark, with a lively and alert gaze. From a distance, the upperparts of the bird appear dark and the underparts white; in juveniles, both upperparts and underparts are dark. The rests are yellow. Appearance A remarkable and impressive bird. It is the largest member of the falcon family, strong, intelligent, resilient, fast, and cautious.

The coloration is varied and characteristic of each member of the species. Birds can be silvery, black, brown, or white. Black plumage is usually found only on females. In Siberia, gyrfalcons have light brown, almost white plumage. The plumage on the belly has an intricate pattern. Adult birds reach a height of up to half a meter or more, and their wingspan is over 1–1.2 meters. Females are almost twice as tall and therefore weigh almost twice as much as males, averaging about one kilogram. Females have a fairly robust body, and their wings are pointed and long.

Two-thirds of the limbs are feathered. Representatives of this species have completely different plumage colors, indicating unique plumage and individuality.

They can soar far above the sea in search of food, and typically migrate south at 2-3 years of age. In winter, these raptors can be seen on the coast, in steppe areas, and in cultivated fields. When spring arrives, they return north. Birds living in Europe migrate south in winter, while Greenlandic representatives of this species winter primarily in Iceland, although they can sometimes be found further south. Gyrfalcons are also distinguished by their vertical climb rather than their spiral flight. The bird rarely flies at high altitudes, and when hunting, it combines high-altitude flight with low-altitude flight. They can often be seen perched in the open on a hill in the tundra. The birds fly at varying speeds and quickly take off after a few wingbeats. When pursuing prey, the bird can fly at speeds of up to one hundred meters per second, especially when diving.