Also known as raptors, these are the feathered friends that are top of the foodchain - carnivorous animals that hunt other birds, mammals and fish.
And Scotland is one of the best places to see these remarkable animals, with large populations of birds that are rare elsewhere in the British Isles.
Here are all 18 species - and where you can see them.
And Scotland is one of the best places to see these remarkable animals, with large populations of birds that are rare elsewhere in the British Isles.
5. Red Kite
Another bird of prey that was previously extinct in Scotland, the Red Kite was successfully reintroduced into Scotland in the 1980s and 1990s, first on the Black Isle and then in Doune, near Stirling. They can now be easily seen at the latter site, at the Argaty Red Kite Centre, with the best dispays taking place during the winter months when the birds form large social groups. They are easily identified by their rusty reddish-brown body with a deeply forked tail.
There are around 150 pairs of Goshawk living in Scotland - mainly in the north-east, the Scottish Borders and Dumfries & Galloway. Once extinct in Britain, the population descends from escaped birds imported to the country from Poland, Finland and Germany in the 1960s and onwards by falconers.
A rare summer visitor ro Scotland from Aptil to October, there are only a few places where the Hobby breeds in Speyside and Perthshire. Easy to identify by their brick-red 'trousers', these birds are spectacular in flight and capable of remarkable feats of aerobatics.
Perhaps best known for its amaxing speed - they can reach speeds in excess of 186 miles per hour when diving for prey - the Peregrine Falcon can be found flying over hilly terrain, sea cliffs and quarries. Look out for its short tail and black 'moustache' that contrasts with the paler bottom half of its face.