Greek Eleonora's Falcon population reaches at least 13,262 pairs
A new national census has found at least 13,262 breeding pairs across Greece, around 1,000 more than during the last comprehensive survey nearly two decades ago.
Ornithomedia is reporting that the breeding population of Eleonora's Falcon in Greece has reached at least 13,262 pairs following the country's latest national census.
The count, carried out in 2024, is around 1,000 pairs higher than the previous comprehensive survey in 2004-06, when an estimated 12,299 breeding pairs were recorded. The new figure therefore points to a modest overall increase across the species' most important breeding stronghold.
Greece holds the largest share of the global breeding population of Eleonora's Falcon, with the great majority of its colonies on islands and rocky islets in the Aegean. The latest survey was undertaken almost 20 years after the previous national count and formed part of a wider conservation programme intended to cover at least 1,000 islands, islets and rocky formations.
The increase has not been uniform. Results reported from the census indicate substantial growth at at least 10 colonies, most of them in the southern Aegean, while numbers fell at more than five colonies. This underlines the importance of looking beyond the national total when assessing how the species is faring.
One of the most striking recoveries was recorded on the Dionysades islands off north-eastern Crete. The breeding population there rose from 587 pairs in 2006 to 1,075 pairs in 2024, almost doubling in less than two decades.
Eleonora's Falcon has an unusual breeding cycle among European raptors. Birds return from their wintering grounds in Madagascar in spring but do not begin breeding until late summer, timing the rearing of their young to coincide with the southbound passage of small migratory birds across the Mediterranean. Before breeding, the falcons range widely over both islands and mainland areas, feeding heavily on insects.
Despite the encouraging national figure, conservation concerns remain. The Greek Wildlife Alliance has highlighted threats including heat stress, changes to breeding and wintering habitat, food shortages and reduced freshwater availability associated with climate change. Changes in land use and poorly located wind-energy development may also affect important foraging areas.
The species is currently classed as Least Concern, but the concentration of such a large proportion of the breeding population in Greece means changes there can have consequences for Eleonora's Falcon across its range. Continued monitoring will be important to establish whether the overall increase is sustained and to identify colonies where numbers are moving in the opposite direction.
11 Aug 2026
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