IPOH: The presence of peregrine falcons in Peninsular Malaysia is closely tied to one critical and increasingly threatened habitat –tall limestone cliffs. Trained as a biologist and now a statistical modeller at the Swiss Ornithological Institute, he has spent decades studying peregrine falcons, from Europe’s limestone cliffs to Malaysia’s karst hills. He said falco peregrinus ernesti is the darkest of all peregrine subspecies and looks strikingly different from those in Europe, with nearly 20 recognised peregrine subspecies globally. Before the coordinated surveys began, only about 20 breeding sites were known, a figure that has since increased to 42. Perak MNS committee member Robert Percival said falcons are elusive birds and tend to keep to high limestone hills and seldom come down to the ground.

Source: The Star January 29, 2026 01:15 UTC