12.7 Falco Peregrinus: Peregrine Falcon
12.7 Falco Peregrinus: Peregrine Falcon
Common Name
- Peregrine Falcon
Description
The peregrine falcon is the fastest animal on earth, going as fast as 200 mph. The peregrine falcon’s average weight
is 1,500 grams, and it’s average length, from head to tail, is 51 cm.
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Chordata
- Class: Aves
- Order: Falconiformes
- Family: Falconidae
- Genus:Falco
- Species:F. peregrinus
Habitat
The peregrine falcon can live in urban areas and rural areas that don’t reach below freezing temperatures. They live
in every biome except frozen or snowy ones. It is the most widely spread raptor, living in every continent. The
peregrine lives all across United States, Mexico, Oceania, western Europe, South America, and South Africa. They
are spread thinly across Asia and Canada.
Biology
Cell Biology
The peregrine falcon has eukaryotic cells (cells with nuclei) that include several organelles such as lysosomes and
cytosol. Ribosomes are used in the process of creating proteins for the cells, the cytosol is used to fill in the cell
outside of the organelles, and the lysosomes are used to break down foreign material.
The peregrine falcon has red blood cells, which are specialized cells that remove waste and deliver oxygen. They
are classified as specialized eukaryotic cells.
The cells divide with mitosis and meiosis. Mitosis is when a cell divides and the daughter cells share the same
amount of chromosomes as the parent cell. Meiosis is a similar process but the daughter cells only share 1/2 of the
chromosomes of the parent cell. Meiosis also produces gametes (cells for reproduction).