Modeling and Control of the Peregrine Falcon Population

Peregrine falcons were recently removed from the endangered species list and there is a desire to harvest these birds for sport. The US Fish and Wildlife Service currently allows minimal harvesting in parts of the country. However, the question is how many can be extracted from the population before the future population will go into decline. My research utilizes a population projection matrix model that takes into account uncertainties in the population data while it analyzes the effect of harvesting on the population. I examine the future of the falcon population in order to help determine an optimal amount of harvesting that still ensures that the population will continue to remain stable or grow by a given amount. By successfully modeling this population, this simulation model can then be altered to describe other wildlife populations.