Smellekens Falco columbarius in Canada, hun jachtgedrag en hoe ze verhinderen dat hun prooi wordt afgenomen door een Slechtvalk Falco peregrinus

The hunting behaviour of Merlins is described for the vicinity of Beaverhills Lake in Alberta, Canada. Of 354 hunting flights observed, 12.4% were successful (compared to 8.2% for 647 hunting flights of Peregrines). The return of the Peregrine Falcon after its pesticide-related decline caused a significant change in the hunting behaviour of Merlins, i.e. more secretive and plucking prey under cover of trees, in order to avoid being robbed by Peregrines. Merlins are vulnerable to kleptoparasites as Peregrines and Bald Eagles. In the countryside Merlins have steeply declined as a breeding bird, but high densities are found in cities (like Edmonton, with 1 pair per 6.6 km² in the early 1990s).