The American Kestral

The American Kestrel is one of the smallest of the falcon family. The males are beautifully marked with bright rufous colorations and slate blue wings. The females have a more even tone with rusty wing colorations. Both sexes have two black stripes on their face.

The females are slightly larger as is the case with most raptors. Their average size is 9-12 inches with a 21 inch wingspan. They are about the size of a common Blue Jay. Kestrals perch in trees or on telephone wires while scanning fields or open areas for prey. In the summer they hunt in the early morning and late afternoon and evening, feeding primarily on large insects such as grasshoppers.. During the winter they hunt throughout the day feeding on small mammals such as mice and sparrow sized birds... thus earning them the name "Sparrow Hawk".

Kestrels do not migrate and are not a social bird. Males and females maintain separate territories. During the mating season the male and female pair up and hunt within joint territories. They will nest in tree cavities,woodpecker holes or in cavities of houses. For about six weeks before the actual egg laying, the females will mate with two or three males. When she chooses a male, the pair mate frequently until the egg laying starts.

Three to seven eggs are layed over the course of three days and are white,cream or pale pink in color.The laying dates vary with geographical location. The females does most of the incubation however the males occasionally sit the nest.Incubation lasts around 30 days. Once the hatching occurs the males bring food to the females and she feeds the brood for the first 20 days. After that the chicks beg food from the males and feed independently. After 30 days the chicks leave the nest but the family remains as a unit for some time. The overall survival rate for the chicks is about 50%.

Until next time,

ED