The world’s largest-known population of Taita falcons has been recorded in Mozambique’s Niassa Special Reserve, where researchers estimate up to 76 breeding pairs live among its isolated island of rocky hills and woodlands, Mongabay contributor Ryan Truscott reported. The vulnerable Taita falcon (Falco fasciinucha) is smaller than a pigeon and has been called a “stunningly cute little raptor.” With fewer than 500 breeding pairs globally, it is one of the rarest and most specialized birds of prey, but human degradation of their habitat has caused their populations to dwindle across their range in eastern Africa, from southern Ethiopia to northeastern South Africa. Most known Taita falcon sites today host fewer than 10 breeding pairs. “Finding Niassa as a [Taita] stronghold still, where hopefully there’s still good genetic diversity, is quite encouraging,” Hanneline Smit-Robinson, co-author of the recently published study and head of conservation at BirdLife South Africa, told Truscott. In 2021, the research team surveyed 35 potential Taita territories within a 75-kilometer (46-mile) radius of Niassa’s administrative camp to confirm the presence of the falcon, reaching some sites by foot and others by helicopter. They found 14 breeding pairs and combined that information with remote-sensing data to model other potential nests across the 4.2-million-hectare (10.4-million-acre) reserve. They estimate between 68 and 76 breeding pairs live in the area. Taita falcons nest on the peaks of granite rock hills in Mozambique’s Niassa Special Reserve. Image courtesy of Anthony van Zyl. With this discovery, the Niassa Special Reserve hosts the world’s biggest-known…This article was originally published on Mongabay

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