What they like

Height and a vantage point. Apartment blocks, church towers, cthemneys, bridges. Preferably with a quiet ledge for nesting and an open hunting ground around it: city edges, rivers, polders. Let those pigeons come. Want to help it? Hang a nest box on a high building (or ask your municipality/church). Keep the breeding site quiet: no DIY, no photographing, just leave it be.

Ecological importance

Top predator that keeps the skies sharp. Eats mainly medium-sized birds: pigeon, starling, thrush, sometimes duck. By doing so it curbs overpopulation and keeps prey birds alert and fit. Its presence also says: there’s enough life here to live on.

When in the Netherlands

All year round. You often see it like a fast arrow above town or polder. Breeding can start in early spring.

Status

Breeding and resident species. Once nearly gone, now firmly back thanks to protection and a cleaner food chain. Still vulnerable to disturbance around nesting sites.