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Lanner Falcons are large falcons. The two sexes look alike. Adults have a buff crown, white cheeks and the typical "tear drop" pattern below the eye of most falcons. The back of race "erlangeri" is blue-grey, with a faint scaly pattern (thin pale-blue edges on the wing coverts). The front is light-grey, with black inverted chevrons that become bolder from throat to belly and trousers. In race "feldeggii" the cap is dark-grey with rufous hues. The back is slate-grey with a brown to rufous scale pattern. Cheeks, tear drop pattern and the entire front are the same as for race "erlangeri". Juveniles of race "erlangeri" have grey streaking in their cap and buff hues. The back is grey-brown with buff to rufous scales. Juveniles of race "feldeggii" also have more buff to rufous hues than adults. Juveniles of both races have a boldly streaked front, with dark streaks on a lighter (buff) background. The irises are brown; the grey, hooked bill has a dark tip, with yellow cere at its base. The lower legs and feet are orange-yellow (Juveniles have greenish-grey legs and feet).

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 Lanner Falcon is available HERE .

Lanner Falcons are a sedentary, mostly African, species. There are 5 extant races (for details refer to a field guide or Wikipedia ). Apart from the Congo Basin, they can be found basically everywhere in southern, eastern and sub-Saharan Africa. Their distribution continues, partly inside the Sahara Desert, but also along its northern edges, from the far West coast to the Horn of Africa, from the Atlas Mountains to the Nile Delta. They are also found in parts of Arabira, Asia Minor and southern Europe.

Although a rare species, with an estimated total population of only 300 pairs in Europe, 2 races of Lanner Falcon can potentially be found. Race "erlangeri", can cross the Strait of Gibraltar from north-western Africa and reach parts of Iberia. Race "feldeggii" has a range that stretches from Asia Minor and Arabia into south-eastern Europe, including Greece, the Balkan countries up to Slovenia and into Italy. Any sightings northward of the Alps or the Pyrenees are considered to be of aviary escapes.

Lanner Falcons have a strong preference for semi-arid to arid habitats in open country, ranging from savannah to desert.

Race "erlangeri"