Pygmy Falcon
Photo: Steve Garvie from Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland · CC BY-SA 2.0

Falcons and Caracaras

Pygmy Falcon

Polihierax semitorquatus

LCLeast Concern
Family
Falcons and Caracaras (Falconidae)
Order
Falconiformes

Overview

The African pygmy falcon (Polihierax semitorquatus)—or simply pygmy falcon—is a diminutive raptor native to eastern and southern Africa. It is the sole species in its monotypic genus, Polihierax. The pygmy falcon is the smallest bird of prey on the African continent, and among the smallest raptors on earth; only the Asian falconets (of the genus Microhierax) are smaller, weighing roughly 30-40 grams less and measuring about 5 cm shorter from head to tail.

Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Range and habitat

Sources and further reading

Last updated September 29, 2026.