Michigan’s peregrine falcon population has risen remarkably in the last 30 years, state officials announced.

Since 1987 the population of peregrine falcons, which are considered endangered in Michigan, has grown from five young birds to 15 nesting pairs, according to a report released last week by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

In 2016, the pairs reared 30 young with nearly half of them in southeast Michigan, officials said.

“The peregrine falcon recovery in southeast Michigan is a true conservation success story,” said Christine Becher, southeast Michigan peregrine falcon nesting coordinator for the DNR. “…We share the same ecosystem with peregrine falcons, and if southeast Michigan is cleaner for peregrine falcons, it is cleaner for all of us.”

Southeast Michigan, especially along the Detroit River and its connecting waterways, is a significant part of the peregrines habitat in Michigan, according to the DNR report.

Adult peregrines are crow-sized birds with slate-gray backs, barred breasts and a wingspan of 36 to 44 inches, according to the DNR. The young birds have brown backs and heavily streaked breasts. All peregrines have prominent cheek marks that look like a mustache on each side of their head.

The state began efforts to save its peregrine population in 1986 and the falcons began reproducing successfully in 1993, officials said.

In 2016, there were 54 nest sites in the state, officials said. Of the 29 sites that produced young, 13 were in southeast Michigan.

Peregrine can reach speeds up to 180 miles per hour as they dive to catch their prey, according to the DNR. Their diet typically consist of small birds, including pigeons, songbirds and seabirds.