Gyrfalcon Facts for Kids
Falco rusticolus · JER-fal-kun
A big falcon that lives on the northern tundra.
- 🏃 speed: not yet checked
- ⚖️ 1.8 to 4.6 lb800 g to 2.1 kg1
- 📏 21 to 22 in53 to 56 cm1 long
- 🎂 14 years14 years1
- 🍽️ meat
- Doing fine (Least Concern)
A gyrfalcon is a big falcon. It lives on the cold northern tundra. It eats birds called ptarmigan and small mammals.
Gyrfalcons live in the far north, and most nest on the Arctic tundra. They eat mostly ptarmigan, which are plump northern birds, and also Arctic ground squirrels, Arctic hares and other small animals.
The gyrfalcon is a big falcon of the far north. Most gyrfalcons nest on the Arctic tundra, away from the northern forests. A female is bigger than a male. Most of what a gyrfalcon eats is ptarmigan, plump northern birds, and it also eats Arctic ground squirrels, Arctic hares and other small mammals and birds. In the wild it can live for more than ten years.
How big is a gyrfalcon?
Gyrfalcon in numbers
| Length | 21 to 22 in53 to 56 cm1average; males and females |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | no checked number yet |
| Weight | 1.8 to 4.6 lb800 g to 2.1 kg1males and females |
| Top speed | no checked number yet |
| How long it lives | 14 years14 years1average; in the wild |
| What it eats | ptarmigan, Arctic ground squirrels and Arctic hares, and other small mammals and birds |
| Where it lives | mostly Arctic tundra, far from the northern forests |
| What kind | Birds |
| Is it in danger? | Doing fine (Least Concern)2 |
A number we couldn’t find on a page we trust says so, instead of guessing.
Wow!
- A gyrfalcon nests on the Arctic tundra.
- Female gyrfalcons are bigger than males.
- Most of its food is ptarmigan, a plump northern bird.
Compare the gyrfalcon
Friends and neighbours
Snowy owl
Arctic fox
Peregrine falconThree questions
Books about the gyrfalcon, free at the library
Ask a grown-up to tap the button: it shows where to borrow a book about the gyrfalcon for free.
For teachers
Use this animal in class: its facts are on this page, and the cards print from it.
Where these numbers come from
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Falco rusticolus (gyrfalcon), checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, Gyrfalcon (Q177688), checked 30 October 2026.