Een broer-zus-broedpaar van Slechtvalken Falco Peregrinus in Sassenheim

Stijn H. van 2024. Brother-sister pair of Peregrines Falco peregrinus breeding successfully. De Takkeling 32: 163-166. In 2023 a pair of Peregrines occupied the newly provided nest box on a church in the centre of Sassenheim, province of Zuid-Holland. Both birds were born (male in 2020, female in 2021) at a breeding site nearby (4.4 km) where they were raised by the same parents (male identified by coded colour-ring, female unringed but behaviour and plumage characteristics diagnostic), and are therefore brother and sister. This pair successfully raised three (male) chicks. Up till 2023, no other brother-sister pairs has been identified in The Netherlands. The prey list for this nest was varied, with 77 prey items distributed among 24 bird species. In terms of numbers and biomass the single most important prey species was racing/feral pigeon Columba livia, with respectively 41.6% and 66.1% of all prey. Mean prey mass was 224 g (1 March-8 September 2023).