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Grey Falcons are small raptors. Their front (throat, breast, belly, vent) is almost white, while the back (mantle, upperwings, tail) is lightly streaked light-grey, with dark-grey wingtips. The thighs are covered by white feathers. The underwings and undertail are lightly barred light-grey. Eye-rings, cere, legs and feet are bright yellow. The irises are dark, the beak is light-grey with a darker grey tip. Contrary to most other species of falcons, Grey Falcons do not have a conspicuous "tear drop" pattern under their eyes. Juvenile Grey Falcons are somewhat darker than adults, with more streaking on the breast.

"Raptors" (or "birds of prey"), most prominently, but also some species of waders, show a pronounced "dimorphism", i.e. a difference between male and female birds - not just in the appearance of the plumage, but in other, important properties, such as size or strength. Here we explain why.

The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found, based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to ebird.org .

The global distribution of the Grey Falcon is available HERE .

NB: Reports on ebird of birds submitted by birdwatchers from the Australian Outback tend to be clustered along roads and public areas such as camp grounds; in such cases their distribution is not a good representation of the overall distribution of the species.

Grey Falcons are endemic to Australia. The core range of Grey Falcons during their breeding season is very restricted, namely just a few locations near the border of QLD, NSW and SA: Along the Paroo River, around Innamincka and on the border of the NT and SA, plus one more patch in the north-western NT. Outside the breeding season Grey Falcons are occasionally found almost all over the interior of the continent, but mostly in the Red Centre. Areas where they are NOT found are: the South-West corner of WA, around the Gulf of Carpentaria, Cape York peninsula, the East coast South of the tropic of Capricorn, in Tasmania and in the south-western corner of VIC.

Grey Falcons specialise in hunting in arid environments, e.g. in desert and semi-desert scrub, often from perches in River Red Gums along dry watercourses.

C. Hayne reports observing a Grey Falcon in flight over Midkin Nature Reserve, 15 km North-West of Moree, NSW, in March 2013. Next, a bird was seen in a few bimble box eucalypt trees, on a cotton farm, 5 km North of Moree, in September 2013.

A. Lines reports spotting Grey Falcons occasionally in the area of Ashley, Biniguy, Moree and Pallamallawa, NSW.

H. Mouritsen reports finding a Grey Falcon along the Edith Creek Fall Road near Pine Creek, NT, in October 2015.

J. Winterbottom reports spotting a Grey Falcon along the Eumungerie to Narromine Road, NSW, in May 2018.

In June 2025, M. Eaton found a Grey Falcon along the Winton to Jundah Road at the Lark Quarry turn-off, QLD.