Laggar Falcon (Falco jugger)
The Laggar Falcon is a medium sized, slender falcon of the Falco genus. It is also known under the names as Luggar Falcon or simply as Jugger, the latter being derived from the Hindi "jugger" which means no more than falcon.
This Indomalayan falcon ist a native to the Indian subcontinent, but nowadays more rare than common. It is distributed from southeast Iran, southeast Afghanistan and Pakistian to India and from there up to the Himalayan foothills, and further to Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and northwest Burma.
In Europe and the arabic countries the Laggar Falcon might be kept by falconers and in falconry stations either for hunting or for breeding programmes.
Description - Characteristics: Laggar Falcon
Breeding – Clutch – Measurements – Habitat – Diet - Threats
Taxonomy:
Order: Falconiformes
Family: Falconidae
Genus: Falco
Species: Laggar Falcon
Scientific Name: Falco jugger
Names and Synonyms of the Laggar Falcon
Name in German: Laggarfalke
Name in Czech: Raroh lagar
Name in Slovak: Sokol lagar
Name in Hungarian: Indiai sólyom
Name in French: Faucon laggar
Name in Spanish: Halcón Yággar
Name in Portuguese: Falcão-lágar
Name in Dutch: Indische Lannervalk
Name in Italian: Falco laggar
Name in Finnish: Intianjalohaukka
Name in Danish: Laggarfalk
Name in Swedish: Juggerfalk
Name in Polish: Raróg indyjski
Name in Russian: Лаггар
Name in Turkey: Lagger Doğanı
Name in Nepali: लागर बाज
Name in Bengali: লজ্ঞর শাহিন
Name in Kazakh: Лаггар
Name in Persian: شاهین بلوچی
Characteristics of the Laggar Falcon
Distribution: Indomalayan, rare in some parts of the area; Indian subcontinent, southeast Iran, southeast Afghanistan, Pakistan, throughout India, Himalayan foothills, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, northwest Burma.
Movements: Sedentary in general, partially migration to India.
Habitat: dry zones, dry open woodland, open countr, scattered with trees, semi-deserts, scrub plains, cultivated zones and areas, often on the edges of villages, also in town centres; up to sea-levels of 1,000 m, max 1980 m in Nepal.
Behaviour: solitary and often in pairs.
Measurements
Size: 39-46 cm
Tail: 16-21 cm
♂: 164-183 mm
♀: 1169-210 mm
Weight: 525-850 g
Wingspan: 88-107 cm
Voice: Mostly silent, except for breeding season, then uttering prolonged shrill “whi-ee-ee” or similar.
Breeding
Maturity: no records available.
Mating Season: probably before begin of breeding season.
Clutches per breeding season1 clutch
Breeding: from January to April, also from February to May in the northern range.
Nest: Old stick nests of crows, no material is added to the platform, sits in trees or on cliff ledges.
Clutch: (2-) 3-4 (rarely -5) eggs
Eggs: creme-coloured broad oval egg with speckles and stains.
Recurrent Clutch: possibly when clutch is lost in the early days.
Incubation: no records available, though it might take c. 30 days on average.
Fledging: no records available, assumable about 32-39 days, similar to other falcons of the same size.
Dependency: No recorded data available, though assumable a short period lasting a couple of weeks.
Miscellaneous
Food: birds, lizards, small mammals (rodents, bats); orthopterans, beetles, large insects. Pairs hunt together co-ordinating their movements.
Longevity: no records available.
Mortality: unknown.
Threats: Lack of food, loss of habitat.